Promises
by Peachuzoid
Summary: The remaining members of the group are forced to split after an ambush. Daryl, Maggie, Carl, and Judith are able to escape but have no idea if anyone else even made it out. They stick together and do their best to push on while trying to find any sign that the others are still alive...Of course it's never that easy when other problems arise.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** Well, this is technically a sequel to Prisoner of War, but it can be read on its own. I hope you enjoy it. Also, this chapter is a flash-forward.

* * *

"Stay behind me—" Daryl ordered Judith. The little girl, terrified, simply nodded and complied. She stepped behind Daryl's tall frame and covered her ears.

Gunfire echoed through the woods as they fought back against the group of survivors. Daryl shot off another round and nailed one of the fourteen guys in the head with a round from the Ruger SR9 he had found just a couple weeks ago. He had to make ever shot count. He was very meticulous with keeping track of how many bullets he had, to which he now currently had eight. That was it. He knew they were very limited on ammo, and their lives depended on it.

Two more men fell to the ground with fatal wounds from Carl and Maggie's shooting. It felt like fighting for their lives had become a daily chore. This certainly wasn't the first group to try and double cross them, and Daryl had a feeling it wouldn't be the last either. The world as they had ever known it was completely gone. There was no humanity left. There was only kill or be killed.

Daryl checked behind him to make sure Judith was doing okay. The tree he was standing behind provided some cover as he double checked his ammo situation, releasing the clip. He knew he wasn't wrong on his counting—he was just hoping some more bullets could just magically appear.

"You doing okay, kid?" Daryl bent down and placed a hand on Judith's small shoulder. She still had her ears covered as her big blue eyes locked onto his stare.

"Yeah…" Judith mumbled. "Is't done yet?"

"Not yet. Hang in there just a little bit longer." Daryl gave her shoulder a squeeze before he stood back up straight, resting his back against the tree. There were still a few gunshots that rang out. He had lost track as to which ones belonged to Maggie and Carl, all of the shots seeming to blend together in harmony. No matter what happened, he couldn't let Judith out of his sight.

Daryl swung around the tree and took aim at the nearest man who was staring Carl down from where he hid behind another tree. By the looks of it, Carl was too focused on covering Maggie's back that he left himself wide open for an attack. Daryl took the shot and the bullet pierced right through the man's neck as he quickly sputtered to the ground.

"Maggie!—" Carl cried out, grabbing Daryl's attention. Maggie was in trouble. These men were trying to take them out starting with whoever appeared to be the weakest. That's where they were wrong though, because Maggie could handle her own. She'd had plenty years of practice.

Maggie shot the man closest to her in the head and shouted back to Carl, "I'm fine!" Daryl could see her slight grimace from the blood splatter of the last shot.

Daryl's attention was drawn to the crunching of leaves nearby, the sound coming up from behind him and to his left. Judith's shrill scream was enough to confirm it as he whipped around as fast as he could to come face to face with one of the men. He was about the same height as Daryl and he didn't appear to have too much muscle mass—an easy target.

Before the man could fire off a round into Daryl's chest, Daryl slammed the butt of the pistol into the man's temple with enough force to knock him back. "Don't look—" Daryl warned Judith as he watched her turn her head away. The man stumbled before Daryl kept at it, slightly leaving his cover from behind the tree and flat out attacked him. He threw the man to the ground and continued to bash the side of his head in, gritting his teeth in disgust as blood spewed and coated the underside of his hand that had a firm grip on the Ruger.

This was what the world had come to though. They had to resort to bashing in _human_ skulls now. It was sickening and Daryl had to admit that even _he_ still wasn't immune to how repulsive it truly was. But it was the only way they could survive—by doing anything and everything in their power. They had to conserve ammo for times when they really needed it. Much like now. But Daryl couldn't risk wasting a bullet when the man was right there in front of him.

Daryl jumped back to his feet and quickly tried to wipe the blood off on the front of his pant leg. He patted Judith's shoulder to let her know it was okay as he pulled her to his side against the tree once more. All he could do was scan the area, searching for any sign of the other two. He hadn't seen or heard anything from Carl or Maggie since their short outbursts moments before. There was still gunfire though so he assumed they were still doing okay. They were tough, they could handle it. But that didn't mean Daryl still didn't worry. For all he knew, they were the only ones left. They were the only family he had left.

And the one thing that Daryl expected to happen, did.

Walkers were beginning to flood the surrounding area, scurrying through the trees and wobbling all over the place. There were at least eight men left as well. Not to mention, Daryl still couldn't see where the other two had disappeared to. Things always seemed to have a way of really spiraling downward—and fast.

Judith gripped a hold of Daryl's pant leg as a small whimper escaped. He felt incredibly guilty for getting her stuck in this mess, but there was no way around it. He'd just have to do his best to protect her at all costs. He only had seven bullets left, the crossbow on his back that held two bolts, and his hunting knife.

Daryl kept his left hand firmly planted on the back of Judith's head to let her know he was very aware of her presence. He had to try and scout the area one last time. He didn't want to do it, but it was looking more and more like it was his one and final option… He was going to have to separate from Maggie and Carl.

The walkers were still closing in as the gunfire slowly died down. Whatever was left of the fight, it was beginning to head west through the trees as the sun was still barely peaking over the horizon. It would be night before long and the chances of survival would drop to a bare minimum. Daryl had to get out of there with Judith—now.

Daryl cursed under his breath, quiet enough so that Judith couldn't hear. He clicked the safety on the pistol and secured it in the waistband of his jeans at his back. Daryl scooped Judith up into his arms and held her close to his chest, making sure to maintain the balance of her weight with his left arm before he pulled the Ruger back out right-handed. If he really needed to kill something, whether that was human or walker, he couldn't risk it by carrying Judith and trying to swing a measly knife around.

"Daryl—where we going?" Judith wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his chest the best she could as his left arm supported her.

"We gotta get out of here and get somewhere safe," Daryl answered her the best he could. He stepped out from behind the tree and began to head south. Right now, there really wasn't a direction that was better than the others. He just needed to get a move on.

Just as he was passing through some more trees though, there was a barrage of bullets whirling passed him. His first instinct was to turn his back to the oncoming attack to protect Judith who was still cradled to his chest. He was able to quickly glance over his shoulder and spot the two men who had found him. Apparently they hadn't all disappeared. But what did that mean for Carl and Maggie?

Daryl was able to shoot one of the men down before any other damage could be done. He was about to shoot the last man standing in view but instead watched as a walker had grabbed him from behind, ripping the skin and tendons from his shoulder as its vicious jaw clamped down. The man screamed out in pain as Daryl kept moving, honestly hoping that man's screams would save their lives. Maybe it would distract the surrounding walkers long enough for him and Judith to make an escape.

He had six bullets left now. Nowhere near enough to even begin to feel safe. Hell, he could waste six of the walkers that were within fifty feet of him right now and then he'd be shit out of luck. He just had to keep pushing on, try to avoid the walkers. The man's screams were beginning to fade and Daryl picked up his pace. He had to move faster. Some of the walkers nearby were beginning to pick up his and Judith's scent and once that man was dead, there wouldn't be any more of a distraction.

"Daaaryylll," Judith whined. Her face was buried into the side of his neck now.

"We're okay, Judy. But hey—we've gotta play the quiet game now though, alright? The quieter you are the better. Win a prize…" It was the first thing that came to Daryl's mind to try and keep her calm and quiet. It also wasn't the first time the quiet game had been introduced to her.

"What I winned?" Judith's voice still carried as Daryl stopped behind a tree once he realized four walkers picked up on it. He could feel his heart thumping in his chest. He couldn't take on four walkers. He just had to pray they found something more interesting than Judith's voice.

"Darrrryl—"

"Shh—" Daryl quietly shushed her, trying to sound as nice as he could. He learned that the hard way one of the times they had gotten themselves in a jam with a herd of walkers previously. He shushed her then and it took Maggie close to five minutes just to calm her back down as she only cried and pouted. He hoped that wouldn't be the case this time for the fact that 1) he didn't have Maggie to calm her back down 2) he didn't have anyone to cover his back and 3) he couldn't begin to take on all of these walkers by himself.

Once he noticed the four nearest walkers had dissipated, he kept walking and gave Judith a reply before her three-year-old mind lashed out at him. "Uhh… You can win a…" Daryl racked his brain. He didn't have _shit_ to give her for a prize as it now occurred to him that Carl had all of their stuff. Carl had offered to carry the backpack since Daryl ended up carrying Judith most of the time, her little legs unable to keep up with them for the long hikes. "I can't tell ya. It's a surprise. Wouldn't wanna ruin the surprise, now would ya?"

"A surprise?" Judith repeated.

"Yeah, but we gotta keep playing the quiet game though. I'll let you know when it's over. Just—Just rest your head and close your eyes in the meantime…"

Daryl was beginning to realize that if he didn't find Carl and Maggie, he was royally screwed. There was no way he could handle Judith by himself—the temper tantrums she threw, the unnecessary crying and whining, and her _volume_. The kid had no sense of the word 'quiet'. When she talked, she talked loud enough for _everyone_ to hear. Daryl would have to work with her on that.

But the further Daryl walked, even changing his direction from time to time, he realized he wasn't getting any closer to finding anyone. There were no longer any gunshots that filled the air and there was no movement in sight as he had finally managed to get out of the midst of the walkers. The sun was beginning to set much too fast for Daryl's liking as all light would be gone within the next hour. He _needed_ to find the others and he _needed_ to find a place to hole up for the night.

This wasn't good. This was _not_ good.


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** Now you get to start from the beginning and see how they made it there.

* * *

_**3 Months Earlier…**_

It had been almost two years since they stumbled across that house. Words could not describe how blessed they truly felt to have a place to call home. They weren't forced to flee from anyone like Woodbury or from a herd of walkers. It just felt like they were all out there by themselves, secluded.

This was something that they needed. They made a living about like they used to before the outbreak that happened almost four years ago. It was hard to believe how much time passed. Everyone was growing up—Carl was getting taller as he reached the age of 15 and Judith was becoming quite the chatter box with her newfound vocabulary.

Daryl was leaning against the doorframe to the dining room as he could see Hershel hobbling along with his crutches into the living room. Even though he only had one leg and his age was steadily climbing, he was still going strong. He wasn't really equipped for this world anymore but he never once gave up. Daryl owed his life to the man after all. If it weren't for him, odds are Daryl would have been right there with his own brother and the Governor. Of course, that also meant he owed his life to Michonne for dragging his ass out of the tombs of hell. If it weren't for her, he would have been dead long before Hershel could have even helped.

Something similar to that of a crack of lightning resonated through the house from outside at that very moment though. The glass belonging to one of the big picture windows shattered as Hershel hit the floor. Daryl froze where he stood. He felt paralyzed as he stared at Hershel's body, blood beginning to pool from a gunshot wound. That's when Daryl suddenly noticed the red beam of light shining in through the windows, reflecting off and giving away the sniper's location.

"D-Daddy?" Beth's voice came out from behind Daryl, cracking.

"What's going on? I heard a gunshot—" Maggie rushed around the corner now, coming to a halt once the scene was in view.

Rick, Michonne, Carol, Tyreese, Andrea, Glenn—everyone began to walk out towards the living room now on alert.

"Stay there!" Rick yelled upstairs to Carl who held Judith back on the upstairs balcony. "And get back!"

"Get down and stay away from the windows!" Daryl added. He pushed Beth and Maggie back but they fought to get passed him. Beth managed to escape just as Daryl barely grabbed Maggie by her wrist and pulled her back.

"Oh, my God—" Carol stood behind Tyreese, her hand covering her mouth.

"If these bastards want a war, then they got one! We're not giving up this house!" Andrea retorted, running for her gun she had sitting in the kitchen.

Another loud _crack_ filled the air as Beth screamed. She sank to the floor in that moment as Daryl could see the bullet hole through the couch. The shot had just barely missed her.

"Beth!—" Maggie gasped.

"Everyone get back!" Rick commanded, taking a few steps back himself.

Michonne ignored Rick's orders as she stayed low to the ground and swiftly made it to Beth's side. She grabbed her by her arms and pulled her back to safety, the young blonde no longer having much fight left in her. Tears streamed down her cheeks as Michonne had to help keep her on her feet.

"If there's a sniper out there, we're most likely surrounded—" Daryl still kept a hold of Maggie to keep her from running out in front of the windows. The sisters exchanged glances as Beth shook her head. Daryl couldn't let his brain register this information at the moment though. He had to keep his mind clear so he could think.

Rick nodded in agreement. He met Daryl's eyes and held his stare a moment to make sure he had his attention. "I need you now."

Daryl knew exactly what he meant by those words. He didn't want to just leave him and the rest of the group, but he knew Rick was right. He had to get Carl and Judith out of there. And hell, he was taking Maggie with him. She'd be safer by his side than trying to run to Hershel like Beth had… It was only a matter of time.

"C'mon!" Daryl pulled Maggie along with him, running up the stairs to meet Carl and Judith in the hallway. Judith was clutched onto Carl's leg, slightly hiding behind him.

"What's going on?" Carl demanded.

"We gotta move. Check my room, grab the backpack I have sitting by the bed and anything else you can think of." When Carl didn't move right away Daryl added, "Go! Now!" He had packed that bag a long time ago and had it ready since the day Rick asked him to keep them safe. It didn't hold much but it would be better than nothing; a little bit of food, a few bottles of water, a light weight blanket, a couple handguns and ammo…

Carl nodded and did as he was told while Daryl kept Judith and Maggie close. Maggie had tears running down her face but she seemed a bit calmer than she had a few minutes ago. Daryl didn't have a clue what to say to her. Was it even possible to comfort someone when they just witnessed their father being mercilessly shot dead?

Daryl eased up a bit on her wrist and watched her to make sure she didn't try to run back downstairs. "I'm sorry—I am. But we gotta move and we gotta move now, alright? Are ya with me?"

Maggie slowly nodded as she wiped her face free of tears. "But what about—"

"We can't risk it," Daryl shook his head. "We gotta fend for ourselves right now. I gotta protect these kids with my life and I don't want anything to happen to you either, Maggie."

Before he could say anymore or Maggie could work up any sort of reply, the sound of a fully-automatic gun sounded off. This sent Daryl's heart racing faster than it had in the past two years. "Goddammit!"

Daryl threw the door open to the room he had been staying in just as Carl was staring back at him. He handed him his crossbow as he already had the backpack strapped onto his back.

"Beth!—Glenn!" Maggie yelled down the stairs for them, her eyes searching. She couldn't help but look at her dad one last time as tears began to well up again.

"Maggie, c'mon!" Daryl warned. From where he was standing, he could see it. That damn red laser light was trained on Maggie without her knowledge. Daryl dropped the crossbow and lunged at her, knocking her to the ground just in time as the bullet zipped over their heads and through the wall behind them.

This only made Maggie that much more hysterical as she couldn't help but sob helplessly on the floor. But they still weren't out of sight. They were on the upstairs balcony that had a perfect view of the picture windows that covered the entire east side of the house, the railings not being enough to provide them with cover.

Daryl quickly got back to his feet and pulled Maggie up with him, his arm secured around her waist. He didn't have time to wait for her to get more composure—they had to move.

He grabbed his crossbow as he led the three over towards the large window at the end of the hall. Lucky for them, that window just so happened to line up with the lower section of the roof.

"Got it—" Carl pulled the Browning BDA pistol from the waistband of his jeans and shot it out. He gave Daryl a curt nod before Daryl began to bust out the surrounding glass with the crossbow so that they had a lower risk of getting cut.

Daryl crawled out first to make sure it was clear before he started to assist the others. He helped Maggie down to the ground first, really hoping that she didn't try to take off on him. He was beginning to realize that he was going to need her. After Maggie was safely on the ground, Carl managed to practically hop down, having no fear of heights. Then Daryl was able to pass Judith down to them before he climbed down himself.

"Start running for the woods. Don't look back, just keep going." Daryl pointed out towards the trees. It was their only hope for survival now—to get away from these savages who were attacking the house. It was apparent that they'd been scoped out for quite some time now. There was no way this attack was just a spur of the moment, it had been planned.

Once they had some distance between them and the house, the gunfire almost sounded like it was muted. They stopped to take a break from all the running, trying to catch their breath. Daryl ended up having to carry Judith so that they didn't lose her. She couldn't keep up with the rest of them and really, Daryl was surprised at how well she seemed to be behaving. They hadn't heard a peep from her since it all started.

"How could you do that to me? You dragged me out of there while Glenn and my sister are still in that house!" Maggie spat at Daryl, placing both of her hands on Daryl's chest and shoving him back.

"You just about got shot and killed yourself," Daryl reminded her. "They probably escaped…" Daryl realized how much of an ass that comment made him sound. _'Probably'?_ _Because that's reassuring to hear_…

"We have to go back. We can't leave them. We can't give up that house—" Carl added.

"We _can't_ go back!" Daryl raised his voice over both of them, grabbing Carl by his shirt once he tried to make a run for it. "It's suicide and in case you didn't notice, it's missing a few windows now and I'm sure a lot worse."

"We _can't _just leave them there to die!" Carl challenged Daryl by raising his voice right back at him, stepping up to him face to face as they were now about the same height. "My dad's in there—_our_ dad. Beth and Glenn. Carol, Tyreese, Andrea, Michonne."

Daryl stood his ground no matter what the two threw at him. He couldn't let either of them go back just as well as _he_ couldn't go back. They couldn't risk it.

But Judith's bottom lip jutted out in a pout, trembling as she began to cry. That instantly shut them up as they all three turned their attention to her.

"Judith, it's okay," Carl immediately walked over to her and dropped down to his knees to pull her into a hug. "Don't cry. Dad's okay, you'll see."

"We've been through worse…" Maggie mumbled, shrugging weakly. "I just thought it was over…"

"Yeah, well we won't make that mistake again now will we?" Daryl retorted, running a shaky hand through his hair. He had to agree though. Everything finally felt like it was going _so_ well. Now the house was a lost cause, Hershel was dead, and who's to say what was happening as they speak. For all Daryl knew, they could be the last ones standing.

Daryl led them further away from the house to be on the safe side and deeper into the woods. Walkers would be attracted to all of the gunfire eventually, and they didn't need to be spotted by a sniper, walker, or anyone else that was out to kill.

"We'll find a place to stay for a while and wait. We'll wait and see if the others make it out. They'll find us or we'll find them, that's all there is to it. But we can't go back into that now." Daryl explained.

"They _will_ make it out. We just have to wait," Carl corrected him.

Judith clung to Maggie, grabbing her hand and sucking on her free thumb as she glanced back and forth between her brother and Daryl.

"Then that's that… We wait."

* * *

"_Daryl… There's something I need to ask of you. Something I need to know."_

"_Yeah?" Daryl scanned Rick's face, searching for what the man could be about to ask. His face was stern and all of the stress that they had encountered through the years was beginning to show in every crease and wrinkle. It wasn't an everyday occurrence when Rick asked something of Daryl. And definitely not in such a serious manner._

"_If—if something happens…" Rick paused. He looked like he was having a difficult time trying to form the words to follow. "I need to know that Judith and Carl will be safe if something happens."_

"_I'll protect them with my life," Daryl automatically replied without another thought. They were Rick's children, Rick's sanity, really. Rick wouldn't be able to live with himself if something happened to them. Daryl was already very aware of that since the loss of Lori. But those two kids meant a lot to Daryl too._

_Rick placed his hands on his hips and let out a shaky sigh, nodding. "Alright… Alright. Thank you." He paused before he continued, looking back at Daryl. "I'm not just asking this of you. Don't think that I'm trying to put all that pressure on you alone. I've talked to the others…"_

_Daryl only nodded in understanding. But for some reason or another, he felt like Rick looked to him more than anyone else. Rick _trusted_ him more than anyone else. And truly, Daryl had a feeling Rick asking him for such meant that he knew Daryl was capable—he just wasn't sure if he should feel honored to have that respect or a little stressed._

"_I promise I'll do everything I can to keep them safe."_


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** I'll try to keep this updated as much as possible. Thank you to those of you who have made this a favorite, are following, and/or have left reviews. I appreciate all of it and I love to hear from you!

* * *

"We go home now?" Judith's voice filled the silence. About the only sounds they had been listening to for the past two days were those of nature—the wind blowing through the trees, the rustling of the leaves, birds calling out overhead. Two days, and they had yet to see any sign of the others.

"We can't go home, Judith," Carl mumbled.

"Why?" Judith stared up at her older brother, her big blue eyes full of innocence.

"Because we can't." Carl leaned against a tree. He sounded defeated. He _felt_ defeated, they all did. It was only obvious they had been watched for quite some time while they resided in that house. They were completely unaware of the savages staking their place and plotting out the attack, the perfect moment to rob them blindly. Those savages took everything from them. Not only was it a house but it meant shelter from harsh weather conditions, living quarters, privacy, and safety. They had food and water there, some plants they managed to grow over the months. It was their home.

"Why we can't go?" Judith now glanced back and forth between the three. It took the three-year-old close to two days to catch on and realize they weren't playing a game. It was the only device that any of them could come up with to make everything seem okay. Now they were beginning to realize it seemed like a cruel joke.

"Come here, Judith." Maggie sat down on the ground with her back propped up against a tree. Judith didn't even hesitate. She walked right on over and sat in Maggie's lap, content. At least for the time being.

There was still some tension in the air between everyone. Most of it was fueled towards Daryl and he was very aware of it. Carl completely shut Daryl out. He was mad. He was fed up with pretending that everything was going to be okay. If it weren't for Judith, Daryl was almost positive the kid would have left them. Carl was strong now, a lot stronger than he had been just a couple years ago. He was more than capable of making it on his own but Judith kept them together. Carl knew it was in Judith's best interest to have all of them there with her.

Maggie would have probably left too. She would have left just out of pure frustration. She lost her father, and her sister and Glenn were God knows where. They could be dead for all she knew, everyone could. But she didn't want to be alone. Daryl could pick that up from all the time he had spent around her with everyone else. He realized being stuck with these people for months on end, for _years_, he began to really read them and their personalities. Maggie didn't want to be left by herself. She wanted the company of others. Even if that meant Daryl Dixon—the man who tore her from that house and took her from her family. She would get over it eventually though. She had to. Daryl just hoped it was sooner rather than later. The cold shoulder vibe he was getting from the two was starting to push him over the edge.

Daryl leaned against a tree opposite of Carl and chewed on the side of his thumb. It was still a habit he couldn't quite break. As he stared out into the vastness of the woods and trees surrounding them, he knew he'd have to be the one to break the news. The sun had set off in the west twice, proving that it had been two days. It truly felt like weeks. But this was it.

"We have to move on." Daryl forced the words from his mouth, speaking quickly and quietly. He had everyone's eyes glued on him in an instant, just as he suspected.

"Move on?" Judith repeated, questioningly. She looked to Carl for an explanation but Carl had his sight fixed on Daryl.

"They could still be out there—these woods run for miles. You should know that better than anyone," Maggie spoke first. She kept her voice rather calm though her eyebrows were furrowed and her eyes narrowed.

"We can't just stay here and you both know that," Daryl started. "We only have so much food, so much water. That runs out—what do you expect to happen? Or how about them bandits come sweeping through here with their automatics? You think we stand a fighting chance sitting here?"

Maggie fell silent as she turned her attention back to Judith. She knew Daryl had a point she just wasn't ready to give up. She curled her arms around Judith and hugged her to her chest in an attempt to give her some relief. Judith surviving this long and making it out of her infant stage of drooling, babbling, and diapers was living proof that there were miracles. She provided them with hope.

"It's been two days. We haven't heard anything out of the ordinary and the only things we've even come close to stumbling upon are our own shadows." Daryl added to his previous statement.

"Why are you so quick to give up? Because you don't want to fight? Because running away is easier? That might be something you were used to doing before all of this, but things are different." Carl finally snapped. "I would have thought you of all people would never turn your back on my dad."

"Carl—" Maggie gasped.

Daryl had been waiting for it though. It was only a matter of time before Carl snapped and let him have it. But Daryl wasn't about to let the fifteen-year-old pull one over on him. Daryl was the one in charge and it was his job to keep them safe. If he needed to prove his dominance in this small group, then so be it.

"You think I wanna give up? You think I wanna just walk away and continue on with life?" Daryl took a couple steps forward and Carl straightened up to match Daryl's stance. "Take a look around you, look where we are. If you think you can make it on your own, be my guest. Here's your window of opportunity. I won't hold ya back." Daryl held his arms out at his sides to express the many directions Carl could take off in. It was a fluke in all honesty because Daryl would never let him go by himself. It was a test on Carl's behalf to see where his loyalties lie.

Maggie held her hands over Judith's ears and was whispering something close to her head. She had to do everything she could to try and keep Judith happy because anytime someone raised their voice or looked angry, it ended with her in tears.

Carl looked as though he were contemplating his next move. His eyes darted through the surrounding woods but ultimately landed back on Daryl. He didn't say a word though, just kept a scowl similar to the man in front of him.

"We survive this by pulling together, not apart." They were the words Rick had used before to get everyone back on the same page, words that Carl knew all too well. "If we're gonna get through this and find the others, I need you both on my side. We ain't gonna get anywhere with you two lashing out at me over something that had to be done. If you wanna blame someone, blame Rick. He's the one that told me to keep your guys safe, and that meant getting out of that house."

Maggie removed her hands from Judith's ears as she could see both of the men begin to relax a bit. Judith immediately kicked up though, crawling out of Maggie's lap and bolting between the two who stood but a few feet apart from each other. She looked up at both of them before she wrapped her small arms around Daryl's leg.

"Uncle Daryl not going nowhere," Judith informed Carl, providing him with a somewhat mean look.

"Judith—" Carl was taken aback. "I—I didn't say…" Carl stammered. He sighed before he continued, "Daryl isn't going anywhere, Judith."

"Good." Judith turned her head away from Carl and pressed her face to Daryl's leg, hugging onto him harder.

Daryl and Carl exchanged glances. Carl looked a little hurt that his sister chose Daryl over him and Daryl just looked confused. How did he make such a big impression on her?

Daryl rested his hand on top of Judith's head to get her to look up at him. Once she let go of his leg, he bent down and picked her up. She instantly nestled into his shoulder and Daryl couldn't help but wonder if she only wanted him around so bad because he was always the one who ended up carrying her out of the three.

"So it's settled," Daryl started back up again. "We've waited as long as we could and just because we're leaving don't mean we're giving up. We need to find supplies and shelter. It's not just about us anymore."

Maggie and Carl both looked at Judith in unison before hanging their heads in defeat.

"But where are we gonna go?" Maggie got back up on her feet and brushed her jeans off, free of the crunchy dead leaves and dirt.

"We should be able to find a main road nearby. Stay close to it and it should lead us to the nearest town," Daryl explained.

"The others might have thought to do the same thing…" Carl muttered.

"Yeah, so it's our best bet." Daryl paused. "You two with me then?"

"Like you said, we need shelter and supplies. We don't have much of an option." Maggie was willing to move on and put everything behind her. She wasn't going to forget everything that happened but she wasn't going to dwell on it. "…I'm sorry for being a brat."

Daryl smiled weakly, "It's okay. I guess I'd rather you be a brat than not say anything at all."

Carl grabbed the backpack and slid his arms under the straps, securing it on his back. He grabbed Daryl's crossbow and offered it to him. "Let's get going then. Hopefully we can find something before it gets dark."

Daryl set Judith back down on the ground as he took his weapon from Carl. They made sure they had everything prepared before they took off. Carl had the Browning BDA, Maggie still had the Walther P99, and Daryl had his knife and crossbow with six bolts. The backpack held a Glock 19 with a few extra rounds and a machete, but other than that, that was all they had for weapons. As long as they didn't run into any other survivors, they were more than capable of taking out a few walkers.

"Where we goin'?" Judith tugged on Daryl's pant leg as they began to walk.

"We're goin' on a little adventure," Daryl replied.

"We have to find a place where we can get more stuff. Like food and water. Maybe clothes?" Maggie tried to explain a little more to Judith. She found herself frowning at the mentioning of clothing. All they had was what they were wearing on their backs. Maybe the harsh reality of everything hadn't quite hit them yet.

"Hopefully we'll have some decent luck," Carl sighed.

"For now, just keep your eyes peeled," Daryl commanded, taking the lead. Judith tagged along at his side while Maggie and Carl were on each side of him a few steps back.


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** Just wanted to say a quick thanks to my anonymous reviewers OtakuGurl and Dawn since I can't send you a PM. It would certainly be difficult having a three year old around during the apocalypse.

* * *

Daryl never thought he'd be the leader of anything. He had followed in his brother's footsteps for half of his life and the rest he just hung back and minded his own business. Now here he was directing Carl, Maggie, and Judith on where to go.

They had walked for at least a couple miles before they even came across a road. Daryl had resorted to carrying Judith once again as she complained a while back that her legs were beginning to hurt her. There was no sign to tell them what road they had stumbled upon or if it would even lead them anywhere worth value. But Daryl led the way, walking back towards the trees a bit and sticking alongside the pavement for a sense of direction and hopes of stumbling across a town.

"Stay close and keep an eye out for walkers or anything else you see that moves," Daryl warned. Anytime he was stuck carrying Judith, he realized it put them more at risk. It was one less person with firepower on their side, seeing as he couldn't attack anyone or anything right away with his arms full. He kept a sharp eye though.

"We are," Maggie answered for both her and Carl. They were but a few steps behind Daryl, flanking his sides with their guns drawn. They couldn't afford to take any more chances after losing everything.

"You'd almost think there wouldn't hardly be anyone left after all this time," Carl spoke, the first neutral comment he had really made since Daryl forced them to flee from the house. "Or you'd at least think there'd be more walkers."

"Don't jinx it," Maggie replied. "We don't need any more problems on our hands right now."

Lucky for them, Mother Nature was still on their side. The days weren't too bad yet and the nights were becoming a tad chilly. They were definitely towards the middle of the fall season, winter not too far off. If they were going to survive, they would need a damn miracle.

"As long as I'm not hallucinating, I believe that's a town up ahead." Daryl pointed out, glancing back at the two. They both forced a weak smile in response, too exhausted and low on hope.

Once they were just on the outskirts, it was obvious the town was in shambles. Every building had the windows busted out, some of them boarded up. A couple of the structures were charred black from being on fire at one point in time. There were still a few vehicles left, some overturned. None of them looked suitable to drive being long since out of commission. A small gathering of walkers littered the streets as well. Luckily, they hadn't been spotted by the dead.

As they entered into the town through the road, Daryl put out his right arm for a moment to slow them down. "Stay behind me and stay quiet." He noticed one of the nearest buildings once held a sign that read 'Pharmacy', as it now hung precariously by a thread in the air. He snuck down the narrow alleyway beside the brick building and waited for Carl and Maggie to join him. They all faced one another as Daryl glanced down at Judith in his arms. He then realized the girl had drifted off to sleep. Maybe being carried was the equivalence of a car ride. But if Judith stayed asleep, it might make things easier. She couldn't be fussy if she didn't have a clue what was going on. And even though he figured he should send Maggie and Carl in to see about supplies so he didn't disturb Judith, he knew he couldn't do that. If something happened to either of them, he'd never be able to live with himself—though they were very capable of sneaking into an abandoned pharmacy and sneaking back out.

"Here, take Judith. She listens to you the best out of the three of us anyway," Daryl carefully handed the girl over to Maggie. Judith stirred a little, her eyes opening just barely and catching a quick glimpse of Daryl before she rested her head against Maggie's shoulder. "Carl and I will scout the building, try to find anything useful. You stay put and uh… holler if you need us. Only use your gun if absolutely necessary. We don't know how many more walkers there are roaming 'round here and we don't need them brought down on our heads."

"Got it," Maggie nodded. "You two be careful too."

"No worries, I'll protect him," Carl grinned, looking back at Daryl. "His age is starting to show. Not sure how much more of this excitement he can handle." He threw the backpack onto the ground in front of him and got the machete out before throwing the bag back over his shoulders.

"Hey—" Daryl pointed a finger at Carl. "You best watch that mouth of yours. I could still kick your ass six ways to Sunday."

Carl only patted him on the shoulder before he disappeared around the corner. Daryl looked back at Maggie and Judith to make sure they were okay to be left alone before he followed after Carl. The boy was already working on squeezing through one of the busted windows that had a couple boards securing it.

"What's the news?" Daryl called out to him, keeping his voice down as he tried to squint to see inside.

"Might be able to find some stuff in here. Only see a couple walkers as of right now," Carl responded.

Daryl worked his way through the same entrance that Carl took all the while thinking that if shit hit the fan, they'd have to find a quicker escape route. There was no fast way of throwing your body through a narrow slit in a boarded up window.

"There're still a few canned goods at least… Might be some other stuff." Carl shrugged. "It looks like someone was staying here."

"Or they still are. Stay sharp." Daryl noticed the front doors were barricaded with empty shelving units and the rest of the windows had been boarded up even more than the one they had come in through. He signaled for Carl to take the opposite side of the store and Daryl stuck close to the nearest wall. They walked at about the same pace, their eyes trained on the two walkers that were lingering down the aisles.

Daryl aimed the tip of the crossbow towards the nearest walker and fired a bolt straight through its head before it even noticed him. He watched as Carl slammed the machete down on the other walker's head, much similar to how Rick killed Tomas back at the prison years ago. Daryl found it kind of odd the memories that could resurface from the grimmest things.

"I don't see any more. So start grabbing everything you can find and start stuffing." Daryl placed his foot down on the walker's head and pulled the bolt free with a squelch of blood and brain matter. If those bolts were precious before they were without a doubt royalty now. He couldn't afford to lose any, that's for sure.

Daryl pulled the rag from his back pocket and wiped the bolt clean before reloading it back in the crossbow. Since they didn't have a spare change of clothes, it was probably best he used a rag rather than his pant leg.

The sound of a door slamming against a wall with brute force startled Daryl as he quickly ducked down and stayed low to the ground behind a shelving unit. He looked across the remotely small store and saw Carl do the same. Their eyes met and Daryl shook his head when Carl looked like he was about to leap back up. There was no way that was Maggie. She would have been quiet. Whoever it was, they were purposely creating a lot of noise.

"I thought I told you to make sure the damn door shut! We don't need a bunch of walkers getting in and reeking up the place!"

The voice was male as it boomed through the store, footsteps shuffling through what must have been a back door. Daryl could tell there was more than one person though. By the footsteps, he'd guess about three.

"Jesus—all you do is _bitch_. There ain't no walkers even in here, look!"

Daryl glanced back down at the walker that he had dispatched just a minute earlier. Its body was sprawled out into the middle aisle, exposed, whereas Carl's dead walker was hidden in the aisle with him.

"…Shit. Is that—is that a walker?"

Daryl listened to their foot falls come closer as he brought the crossbow back out in front of him, taking a few steps back blindly, maintaining his crouched position. His heel collided with a tin can as it rolled backwards and across the floor. Daryl cursed under his breath and made a move for the next aisle as quietly as possible, avoiding the larger pieces of glass that were scattered on the floor from the windows.

"Someone's in here."

"We ain't gonna hurt ya. Just come on out now."

There was an audible click of a gun being loaded and Daryl could hear them start to spread out. Their footsteps were no longer all together and he couldn't see Carl from where he remained crouched. _Dammit! Can we just catch a fucking break?_

"Found a kid!—"

Daryl immediately straightened up and flung himself around the corner. Two of the men were circling around where Carl was last seen. Daryl threw the crossbow up and didn't even think twice before he pulled the trigger and nailed one of them in the head. The man's body dropped to the floor and averted the other man's attention away from Carl, long enough for the kid to attack him with the machete. Daryl grimaced as Carl sliced the man's throat, dropping him to the floor. It was a smart move on Carl's behalf but still sickening nonetheless.

The crunch of glass caught Daryl's attention as he whirled around to find the third and last man standing holding a pistol targeted at him. With the distance that was between them and with the crossbow not being loaded, Daryl was defenseless. The man grinned, half rotten teeth showing, and for a moment Daryl thought he could already pass as a walker. The gunshot rang out and Daryl had just enough time to dodge the flying bullet. And in no time at all, another shot followed. Only this time the shot had been targeted at the man instead.

Daryl watched as his body crashed to the floor lifeless with a bullet hole through his forehead. He sighed in relief as he collected himself and looked back over towards Carl. "I owe ya."

"Consider us even. I wouldn't have been able to take both of those guys out on my own," Carl remarked.

Daryl nodded, "Check 'em for supplies. If they've got guns, take 'em. We're gonna need everything we can find." He walked over to the man who had tried to kill him and grabbed the pistol from his hand. He released the clip and counted four rounds. _Guy must have been pretty ballsy to go 'round wasting ammo like that._

"Daryl?—Carl?" Daryl looked back at the window and could see Maggie peeking in. Judith was now awake too, her little hands gripping onto the window ledge.

"We're alright. Just had a little run in," Daryl replied. He shoved the pistol into the waistband of his pants against his back.

"Well you're about to have a much bigger run in if you two don't hightail it outta there!" Maggie's voice was full of concern.

_Shit_. He had forgotten about the walkers that were out on the street. Why did that not occur to him before now? They surely heard the gunshots just as well as Maggie and Judith.

"We can't outrun all of them—" Carl was now at Daryl's side, the backpack strapped on his back and machete still in hand. "What if we stayed here? We could fortify it some more, keep the walkers out. The back door has to obviously work. We might be able to lock it."

"Right now, I'm thinking that staying is our only option…" Daryl didn't even have to think it through. He knew running wasn't an option. It would be stupid to even try. But staying wasn't exactly the brightest idea either. They were screwed either way. "Pass Judith through and climb in here after."

"Are you crazy?" Maggie hissed.

"We can talk about it once you're in here, now c'mon!" Daryl walked over to the window to assist them. "Check the back door and make sure it's secure!" He yelled over his shoulder to Carl and he could hear him run back for it.

"We hiding?" Judith asked once Maggie had helped her crawl through the opening, Daryl making sure she made it back on her feet.

"Yeah, but stay close. You're not hiding from us, you're hiding from the walkers," Daryl informed her while he took Maggie's hand and helped her through the narrow slit. Maggie sighed once she was inside, brushing at her arms.

"Like hiding seek?" Judith looked back and forth between Maggie and Daryl, curiously awaiting a response.

"It's sort of like hide 'n seek. But you have to be quiet so that they can't find you," Maggie explained.

"Carl?—" Daryl called back for him.

"I got it. The door's locked and secured," Carl walked back out into the open store. "What about that window? You think those boards will hold?"

"Was just thinking 'bout that. Help me move this over." Daryl grabbed onto the nearest shelving unit and waited for Carl to grab the other side. Together they managed to slide it over in front of the window. It provided them with a bit more protection while at the same time, it blocked out a huge light source. Most of the light that they had inside the pharmacy was coming from outside through that particular window.

Judith immediately whimpered and clung to Maggie, "I no like this game!"

"Shh!" Daryl shushed her, taking a few steps back from the window with Carl. There was a loud bang to follow up as walkers had begun to pile up on the other side of the wall. Carl and Daryl eyed the wall suspiciously, making sure that everything was holding up. The growls of the walkers could be heard as they scratched and clawed trying to fight their way in.

When Daryl was satisfied, he looked back at Maggie and Judith. He instantly noticed Judith wearing a frown and her eyes were watery. And just like that, she began to cry. It was anything but graceful. Judith wailed and clutched onto Maggie again as the tears streamed down her face.

"The walkers can't get us. We're alright in here, Judith," Daryl tried.

But the words fell on deaf ears because Judith just kept crying. Maggie ended up sitting on the floor and pulling the little girl into her lap. She tried rubbing her back to soothe her but it still didn't do much.

"Why's she crying?..." Daryl felt lost on the subject. He knew nothing about little kids other than what he experienced growing up himself. He assumed Carl was right there with him because he still stood by his side.

"She just woke up not too long ago. She's tired and she's fussy. Add that to walkers trying to tear the walls down and you shushing her—" Maggie started.

"I wasn't mean about it," Daryl muttered, crossing his arms.

"She's three, Daryl," Maggie reminded him. "Give her a break. At least we're safe in here."

Daryl was about to mutter 'I hope so' but figured it was best that he bite his tongue on that one. Carl said the back door was secure and all that left was the front of the store. Everything seemed stable enough and they certainly weren't making an escape anytime soon.

It took a few minutes but Maggie was finally able to calm Judith down as she was curled up in her lap. Her dark hair was slightly disheveled from burying her face against Maggie and her face was wet with tears and snot. Maggie used her shirt sleeve to wipe Judith's face clean before she ended up running her fingers through her hair. Judith rubbed at her tired eyes before shutting them, seeming to doze off again.

"Looks like we're staying here for a while."


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** I have created a playlist of songs from The Walking Dead. Needless to say, I am very content.

* * *

As expected, the walkers were relentless. They might have been considered mindless creatures—only seeking out their next meal—but once they caught a glimpse or whiff, they were attached. The sun had gone down long before the walkers even began to disperse. There was still a good handful pounding away at the front of the pharmacy in desperation. But since the group lost the light of day, they had to make do with staying the night there. Traveling at night was out of the question.

Daryl rubbed his face and debated on getting up. At the moment, he wasn't sure he _could_ get up. He had fallen asleep sitting up with his back propped against the back door. His body was far from thanking him as his back and neck ached. He slept there as a precaution though. There was no telling if those three men were alone or not, and Daryl didn't want to risk it.

He sluggishly climbed back to his feet and stretched, feeling a little better once he was able to pop his back to relieve some of the pain. He grabbed his crossbow and headed around the corner that led out into the store itself to find Maggie still curled up with Judith on the floor. Carl was on his feet and already rummaging through everything.

"How long have you been up?" Daryl walked over to join Carl's side, rubbing at the back of his neck. Carl was on his knees digging through the backpack in front of him.

"Not long. Couldn't really sleep." Carl sat back and huffed with a look of defeat. He glanced up at Daryl and cracked a grin, "You look like shit."

Daryl lightly smacked him upside the head, "Yeah? Well look who's talkin'." He couldn't help but grin a little in return. "So what is it that you're diggin' for?"

"Nothing really, just trying to get a count for how much stuff we have. It's not a lot for four people. Er, three and a half…" Carl shrugged. He stared down at his feet, fixated before continuing his thoughts, "I think we should try to go back. We could at least get some of the stuff we left behind. And maybe the others thought to do the same."

Daryl buried his face in his hands and paced back and forth momentarily. It was too early for Carl to start in on this. "We can't," he sighed. "Those guys are either still there or they've already taken everything of any value."

"But the others—" Carl persisted.

As much as Daryl wanted to agree with Carl, he wasn't sure that he could. Carl did have a point that the others might have gone back after the attack. But there was also the dreaded fact that they could all be dead. There could be nothing left. Daryl wasn't sure he was ready to face that, or drag any of them into it.

"Look, I don't think Rick would stay put. After these guys coming through like they did… Rick would have evacuated the area."

"Daryl has a point." Maggie was now awake and standing slightly behind him, off to the side.

Before Carl could continue on the tirade, Judith squeezed through everyone and pounced on him. She giggled as she rested her head on his shoulder and Carl couldn't help but smile and wrap her in a hug.

Daryl dismissed himself and walked over towards the pile of bodies in the corner. He and Carl had dragged the two walkers and three men that they had killed out of sight for the most part. He never did retrieve the bolt he shot at the man as he gripped it in his hand and hesitated. As gruesome as it was, he couldn't help but stare at the bodies. Three of them were _human_. What was worse was that they didn't even hesitate. Their lives were at stake and they killed those men without a second thought. Daryl grimaced and yanked the bolt from the man's head before he worked on cleaning it off on the rag from his back pocket.

"There's some medication over here. And there's a handful of bandages and gauze," Maggie's voice resounded in the bare store. Just as Daryl returned to where he left everyone Maggie shot him a devious look, "With you around, Lord knows we'll need all that we can get."

"Shit happens," Daryl retorted. "I don't plan on acquiring any new injuries."

Maggie picked up a small orange container that looked to be a prescription drug, twisting it in her hands to read the label. "I don't have a clue what half of this even is." She frowned and lowered it back down to her lap, "My dad would…"

Daryl leaned against one of the shelving units and averted his gaze to the floor just by Maggie as she sat with her legs folded up in front of her. Carl stopped pilfering through the shelves and even Judith fell silent. Her curious eyes bounced from figure to figure trying to pin what happened. But Judith must have picked up the fact that Maggie seemed the most upset as she crawled over to her side and leaned against her.

"Don't be sad, 'kay?" Judith glanced up at Maggie.

Maggie forced a laugh as her voice cracked. She hugged Judith to her side and briefly rested her head on top of Judith's. It was hard to believe that Hershel was gone. Just like that, like a snap of fingers, one crack of a sniper rifle.

"Should we head out?" Carl asked after a moment of silence.

Daryl glimpsed down at Maggie and Judith before nodding. "We should be able to get out the back. I doubt the geeks were smart enough to actually surround us." Crossbow in hand, Daryl walked towards the back of the store and cracked the door. Other than a cool breeze and a couple of walkers, nothing else seemed to obstruct the back alley to freedom.

Daryl shut the door and walked back to the others. Maggie was shoving a bunch of medical supplies into the backpack and Carl was opening a can of peaches. Judith lingered by her brother as she watched intensely.

"Wha's that?" Judith stood on her tip toes to try and see into the can that Carl was working on with a utility pocket knife.

"Canned peaches. Sounds like the most appetizing thing we have for breakfast," Carl muttered. He finally managed to wedge the top of the can off as it clang to the floor. "And we just so happened to be lucky and have a box of plastic forks." Carl smirked as he opened the flap on the box sitting on the shelf and pulled a fork from it, sticking it into some of the peaches that were on top. He handed the can to Judith as her eyes lit up, immediately grabbing the fork by the handle and shoving a peach slice into her mouth.

"So now what's our plan?" Maggie got back to her feet after she zipped the backpack up and looked to Daryl for an answer.

"Uhh…" Daryl chewed on the side of his mouth. He still wasn't used to them looking to him for answers, it felt weird. "Maybe get a glimpse of the town, see if there's anything else that looks worth stopping for. Otherwise we'll probably just head out and try to find the next town."

"If that's the case, then we better get a move on. Who knows how far the next town could be." Carl took the can from Judith and took a couple bites himself before passing it to Maggie. She accepted the offer with a disgusted face but still ate a couple slices. They were pretty much beyond the point of disgusted from eating the same foods over and over for the past few years. When Maggie tried to pass the can to Daryl he just shook his head.

"You're not going to eat?" Maggie questioned, handing the can to Judith.

"Nah, I'm good. Not really hungry…" Daryl shrugged.

"Can't blame you." Carl grabbed the pack on the floor and adjusted it onto his back.

Once the three had finished off what was left of the can—which Daryl noticed was mostly Maggie and Judith as Carl left more for them to eat—they headed out. Daryl led the way with Judith right behind him, followed by Maggie, then Carl. They felt like that was the safest way to travel down the alleyway. Carl wanted Maggie and Judith to be protected just as much as Daryl did. With Daryl taking the lead, he dispatched the two walkers in silence using his knife.

The group approached the end of the alley that led out into the middle of the town. They took in the sight, their eyes running over each and every individual building with careful thought. There didn't look like there was much left. There was hardly anything left in the pharmacy so they figured the rest of the town wouldn't be worth the trouble having to try and fight off the walkers. So they quietly made their exit and left the town limits.

"I'm bored." Judith drug her feet which in turn slowed everyone down to keep her close.

"Come on, Judith. You have to keep going," Carl gave her just a little push on the back to keep her feet moving.

"But wha's there a do?" Judith grabbed her brother's hand and followed along at the normal pace.

"I'd say we could play I Spy but I guess that would be a short game considering there's nothing around us but trees, a road, and grass." Maggie smiled, "I used to play it with Beth when we were younger. We'd go on road trips every so often with mom and dad to see our aunt and uncle. They lived in Alabama, so it was quite the drive."

"I used to play it with my mom and dad. And the alphabet game. The one where you find something that starts with A and you go down the alphabet. Whoever finished first won." Carl laughed, "Stupid game, really."

"I could play those?" Judith looked eagerly between the two.

"I don't think you're old enough yet, Judith." Maggie ran her hand over her head with a smile.

"What about you, Daryl?" Carl asked.

"I know my alphabet, thank you very much," Daryl replied. This got a laugh from Maggie and Carl.

"I believe he was asking if you had any stories to share. You're awfully quiet. And besides, the more we talk, the faster time will go by." Maggie tried.

"Ain't really one for talkin'. 'Sides, ain't a whole lot to say. Hung out with Merle a lot when he was 'round," Daryl shrugged. The one thing he really didn't want to talk about: Merle. He never really even took the time to think about it, to grieve. At the time, his injury had taken quite a toll on him. It was just one thing after another.

Maggie frowned, having realized by Daryl's tone what was on his mind with that response. After all, she had been right there when it happened. It pained her to revision it in her mind so she could only imagine what Daryl was thinking and feeling. Maybe talking about their families wasn't such a great idea. It was depressing overall.

"Tag—you're it!" Carl shoved Daryl's back, stifling a laugh. Maggie grinned once she caught on to what he was doing and she was thankful for it.

Daryl stopped walking and turned to look at him, eyebrow raised. "What the hell're you doin'?"

"Playing tag, what's it look like. You're it," Carl beamed.

Daryl shook his head and continued to walk onward. It was silent after that and he let a minute pass before he whipped around and tagged Carl back, "You're it, no tag backs."

"Wha—" Carl looked dumbfounded as Daryl now grinned. "Hey!" Maggie laughed as Carl turned to face her, "You're next!"

"Oh, no you don't—" Maggie quickly stepped back as Carl swatted out to tag her arm and missed. Maggie let out a squeal as she hurried away. They ended up making a full circle around Daryl and Judith before she came to a stop and tried to use Daryl as a shield.

"Excuse me?" Daryl tried to glance behind him but Maggie kept turning him to face Carl as they walked in a circle, her hands gripped onto his sleeves.

"Daryl can be base," Maggie breathed, trying to catch her breath from running.

"No way—" Daryl tried to interject.

"One, two, three, get off my father's apple tree," Carl challenged, folding his arms in front of his chest.

"Aw, shit..." Maggie tried to make a run for it but Carl got her, ending in more laughter. She casually walked over to Judith and tapped her shoulder. "You're it, Judith."

Judith's eyes lit up, "What I do?"

Maggie and Carl exchanged glances and with a smirk playing on Maggie's face, she bent down beside Judith and whispered in her ear, "Go after Daryl."

Judith smiled and nodded her head enthusiastically. She ran for Daryl but he could overhear Maggie as he jogged backwards a few steps making Judith giggle as she still tried her hardest to pursue him. He came to a stop and put his hand up for a high five, Judith slapping her hand to his, "You's it!"

Daryl narrowed his eyes as he looked back and forth between Carl and Maggie, a smirk slowly creeping across his face.

"Uh oh…" Carl's face fell. "Run!"

Carl and Maggie split and Daryl set his crossbow down on the pavement and chased after Carl. Maggie veered off and crouched behind Judith, "You think he'll catch him?"

"Mhmm," Judith nodded. "This is funned!"

"It is pretty fun, huh?" Maggie smiled.

"Augh!" Carl groaned once Daryl caught up to him and smacked him on the back.

Maggie quickly grabbed Judith's hand and ran towards them, "Daryl's base, go!"

Judith threw herself at Daryl and wrapped her limbs around his left leg, sitting on his foot. She initially collided into the back of his knee almost making him lose his balance but he caught himself just as Maggie wrapped her arms around his right arm. Both of the girls clung to him as Judith giggled even more at Carl's frustration.

"You people are nuts," Daryl shook his head, trying to hold back a grin.


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** Sorry for slacking. The next chapter is finally here! Woohoo!

* * *

The game of tag came to a close as Daryl suggested they start moving again. They were in desperate need of shelter before the night fell upon them and every second was vital. With each step they took, they were hoping they were only that much closer to their next destination—preferably a home or another town that had some supplies. But they were well aware of their luck, or lack thereof.

"We almost there?" Judith drug her feet as she stared down at the pavement. "My feets hurt."

Daryl sighed as he slid the strap to his crossbow over his head and turned back to face Judith. Her blue eyes met his and she smiled. She knew she could get him to cave and Daryl was beginning to realize that might be a bad thing. She was only three and she was getting her way.

Daryl picked her up and continued walking with Maggie and Carl by his side. Judith rested her head against his shoulder after a while, becoming too tired to pay any attention to their surroundings. That was all it took to make her content.

"She's so spoiled," Maggie smirked. "She already has her 'uncle Daryl' wrapped around her little finger."

"Shut it," Daryl grumbled. Even though he'd never admit it, he kind of liked the feeling of having Judith resting against him and wanting him to carry her. He never really had much interaction with kids since he was one—and even then those interactions weren't all that great.

They continued walking down the highway for another mile or two in complete silence. There wasn't much to say and there wasn't much to look at other than the woods on both sides of the road. The sun was beginning to lower across the horizon casting a dim glow to still light the way. With the days growing shorter it only meant one thing: winter would be there before they knew it.

Daryl felt Judith's head slip, resting more on his chest now than his shoulder. He glanced down at her and noticed she must have drifted off. Of course there wasn't much for her to do anyway and she didn't have to feel worried with the others. She still maintained all of her innocence.

As Daryl adjusted Judith's head to a more comfortable position, he realized everything fell silent among them. It was like the wind had halted, the birds disappeared, and everything that was an ordinary sound of nature just vanished. And Daryl had been around the woods long enough throughout his life that he knew very well what that all meant.

He stopped walking which in turn caught Carl and Maggie's attention to stop as well.

"What's going on?" Carl looked to him for a response, adjusting the straps of the backpack and rolling his neck.

"It's too quiet." Daryl squinted out into the trees and glanced all around them. If it's what he thought it was, they were once again royally screwed. They were stuck in the middle of a highway with nowhere to run but into the woods. And as pleasing as that might have sounded, it probably wouldn't be a safe route to take. There was no telling what could be out there.

Maggie pulled her knife from the sheath on her belt as Carl threw the backpack down and dug the machete out. They wasted no time at all preparing for the worst at Daryl's words. They were both armed with pistols as well, Carl still wielding his Browning BDA and Maggie, her Walther P99. Not to mention the two spares they picked up from the men at the rundown pharmacy. Daryl had one of them tucked into the back of his waistband just to be on the safe side though it only contained four bullets.

"Heads up!" Maggie called out, turning her attention towards the trees on their right. Just as suspected, walkers were stumbling through the opening of the woods and rushing forward at the sight of them.

Carl and Maggie shielded Daryl for the time being and waited for the walkers to come closer before attacking. Daryl double checked all around them to make sure they weren't about to be ambushed from all angles. So far it seemed like they were only coming from the north.

Daryl patted Judith's back to try and wake her up, "C'mon, Judy… Naptime's over." Judith's eyes flickered open for a moment and she grunted, burying her face into his shoulder. Daryl couldn't help but sigh. She wasn't going to cooperate. He had a feeling this would happen and he wasn't about to just drop her on the ground and go. He knew he needed to keep her happy, otherwise he was just asking for her to start crying again.

Maggie and Carl had both started to take out a few walkers by that time and Daryl had no choice but to draw his knife and prepare to help them, balancing Judith's weight with his left arm. But she suddenly shifted and gripped onto his shirt, "I'm awaked!" Daryl glanced back down at her and noticed she had her eyes fixed on the walkers that were coming up and onto the highway.

"Good—stay behind me," Daryl set her back down on her feet and stepped up to help the others. He drove the knife into one of the walkers' heads with a crunch and pulled the blade back out, kicking the body down. There were already a few dead on the ground and another six coming at them. It was a manageable size group.

Maggie grabbed the next walker by its hair and jammed her knife into its temple before shoving it to the ground. Carl brought the machete down onto a walker's head and pushed its body into the walker behind it. The walker fell and Carl walked around to it and smashed its head in with his foot while Daryl and Maggie took care of the other three with no problem.

"Alright, let's keep moving." Daryl pulled the rag from his back pocket and cleaned his knife off before sliding it back into its sheath. Judith listened and stayed put behind them while they killed the walkers. She looked relieved to see that it was over.

Maggie bent down and wiped her knife off on one of the walker's shirts. It was better than wiping it off on herself. They had to keep as clean as possible without any spare clothes and they certainly didn't want to walk around covered in walker blood and guts.

Carl followed Maggie's lead and briefly wiped the machete across a different walker's shirt. "You think we're gonna be able to find somewhere before it gets dark?"

Daryl shrugged, "Worse comes to worst, we'll be camping out in the woods. Or up in a tree."

Carl grabbed the backpack and slipped his arms through the straps while Maggie slid her knife back into its sheath. Judith seemed fairly wide awake now as she was bouncing on one foot and switching to the other, staring down at the pavement. She realized it was quiet so she stopped and looked up at everyone, only to see them all staring down at her.

"What'd I do?" Judith asked, glancing back and forth.

"Nothing, we were just wondering what you were doing," Maggie smiled.

"I's jumping over the cracks," Judith cross her arms defensively.

"Come on, Judith." Maggie offered her a hand as Judith took it and they continued walking. She kept Judith on the inside between her and Carl with Daryl still leading them.

It had once again returned to silence. Maggie glanced over at Carl and caught his attention. She motioned for him to grab Judith's other hand with a nod of her head and smiled. Carl wasn't sure where she was going with all of this but he took Judith's hand anyway.

"Oh no, another crack!" Maggie exclaimed, lifting on Judith's hand. Carl grinned as he caught on and followed her lead, both of them able to pick Judith up by her hands. Judith let out a squeal as her feet left the ground and giggled afterwards.

"Do again!" Judith tugged on their hands. Maggie and Carl lifted her up again even higher this time as she giggled even more. "Again! Again!"

Daryl stopped and turned around once again to look back at everyone, lowering his crossbow. "Do you people not know the meaning of quiet? Good lord," he turned back and continued walking, shaking his head.

Judith's lips formed a straight line as she stared at Daryl's back, the look on her face suggesting that she thought she was in trouble. Maggie noticed this and quickly spoke up before she could get upset.

"He's just grumpy because he's old. He doesn't know how to have fun like the rest of us, huh?"

Judith smiled and let out another giggle, "Uncle Daryl, you're grumpy!"

Carl laughed now as Maggie was turning Daryl out to be the victim. He still kept a hold of his sister's hand as they approached what seemed to be a slew of abandoned cars. It looked much similar to the highway back by the Greene's farm when they had been swarmed by the herd of walkers.

"I'm glad you three are finding ways to entertain yourselves…" Daryl muttered.

Carl squeezed Judith's hand to grab her attention and put his index finger in front of his lips, quietly shushing her. Judith nodded as they were now among the graveyard of vehicles. Carl released her hand once he realized Maggie had her and started ducking and looking into cars along with Daryl. It was easy to think that all the cars would be a gold mine with supplies, but after the years that had passed, there wasn't much left. Whatever _was_ left, it didn't generally look too appealing. Some of the cars still housed dead bodies.

Daryl spotted a semi up ahead and made his way towards it. He climbed onto the steps and peeked in through the passenger window. There was what appeared to be a dead body in the driver's seat, but just to be on the safe side, Daryl grabbed his knife.

He opened the passenger side door and climbed up into the cab being cautious of the body. He took another step closer before it sprung to life, its arms reaching out for him as it got back on its feet, stumbling. Daryl threw it back against the driver's side door and stabbed the knife into its forehead, keeping it pinned to the door with his arm across its neck. He pulled the knife back and tossed it onto the floor beside him as he reached around and opened the door behind the walker. Successfully, he managed to throw the body out and shut the door again.

Daryl picked his knife back up and wiped it off again with his cloth before putting everything back where it belonged. The cab didn't smell the greatest but it was tolerable. It could definitely be worse.

Daryl swung himself out onto the top step at the passenger side door and whistled, waving the others over. They all looked surprised as they made their way to the large truck. Carl allowed Maggie and Judith to enter the cab before him and they continued to look surprised once they were there.

"Whoa—this is what a semi looks like on the inside?" Carl glanced around at the interior of the cab, baffled.

"A sleeper cab, yeah. Why do you think I hightailed my ass over here when I saw it?" Daryl smirked.

"Well, I'm glad someone has knowledge of semis. I would have never thought to check this out," Maggie remarked. "Daryl, this is awesome!"

The truck cab was big enough for all four of them to stand in and still have adequate room. There were two separate seats in the front for a driver and passenger. Behind those seats were bunk beds and two cube-like structures to utilize as small counters. The best news on top of the discovery was that it was still clean.

"There was only one walker in here, still sitting in the driver's seat. So we got lucky no one else thought to look in here," Daryl checked the blanket that covered the bottom bed and seemed satisfied. Judith was more than satisfied as she climbed onto the bed and sprawled out.

"I was thinking we could just go ahead and call it a day. We can go through the cars tomorrow," Daryl continued.

"That sounds like a wonderful plan to me," Maggie shut the passenger side door and locked it. Carl locked the driver side door and pulled the curtain across the window. Maggie pulled the curtain across the passenger side as well, leaving nothing but the windshield exposed and allowing what daylight they had left to come in.

Carl tossed the backpack onto the floor and grabbed a water bottle. He took a couple drinks, thankful for the liquid to soothe his dry mouth and throat. He passed the bottle to Maggie and everyone took a couple drinks before it was returned to the bag for safe keeping.

"What's for dinner, chief?" Daryl joked, sitting down on the bed. Judith crawled over to him and leaned against his side, watching her brother continue to dig through the backpack. Maggie leaned against the passenger seat with a faint smile playing at her lips.

"Well, it'd be nice if we had a pan or something that we could make a fire and heat this stuff up… But we have soup, more fruit, or… Spaghetti-O's?" Carl held the can up, raising an eyebrow.

"Ooh, gimme—" Daryl got up and snatched the can from Carl's hand. "It has the easy open top too."

"You can't be serious," Maggie laughed.

"What? It's better than eating more of that fruit shit. Switch it up for a change. Don't gotta heat this up for it to be good." Daryl pulled the lid off and sniffed the contents, giving the can a slight swirl as he looked down at it. "Still looks and smells okay."

"I grabbed a few extra forks when we were at the pharmacy. Figured they would come in handy," Carl handed one to Daryl.

"Good thinking," Daryl nodded. He stuck the fork into the can of Spaghetti-O's and took the first bite. "Still taste okay too. I think we're in the clear."

"Thank God for Campbell's," Carl grinned.


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER: **I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** I need to get back on track with updating. I'm working on that the best I can. Things were a little hectic and they're about to go there again with upcoming tests and projects. But over the weekend I got to meet Norman Reedus, Michael Rooker, Chandler Riggs, Sarah Wayne Callies, Jon Bernthal, Scott Wilson, and Lew Temple. They were all such sweethearts. I also got to meet a certain somebody from off of this website, making a new best friend (PrintDust). Needless to say, it was one of the best weekends I have ever experienced.

* * *

Maggie sat on the floor between the driver and passenger seats staring down towards her feet, her knees pulled up to her chest. She couldn't sleep—her mind wouldn't rest. Carl had claimed the top bunk and seemed to be sleeping peacefully, or at least as peacefully as he could. Daryl fell asleep on the bottom bunk, Judith curled up with him. Judith was on the inside tucked between the wall and Daryl as he had his arm around her. She forced a smile at the scene displayed before her. She knew Daryl hadn't planned on falling asleep. He had told them that he was just lying down and that he'd most likely stay up for a while just to be on the safe side. But Maggie was glad he ended up passing out because he looked like he needed it.

Maggie figured she would let her mind win this one. If she got it all out of her system now, she figured it'd be better than keeping it bottled up and ignoring it.

Her dad crossed her mind and how she prepared herself for the worst when Rick cut off his leg after he got bit, how she was practically ready for him to die then. She didn't expect for him to die now, and not the way he had either. She could only hope that Beth was still alive and doing okay. She knew Beth relied on their dad more, being the youngest.

No matter how well Maggie tried to keep herself composed, she couldn't help but cry when she started to think about Glenn. She managed to stay quiet, only allowing the tears to travel down her face as she avoided any obnoxious sobs that threatened to escape. She truly loved Glenn and she couldn't picture him not making it out of that house. Surely he would have grabbed Beth and gotten out of there.

It pained her even more to think about the others—Rick, Andrea, Michonne, Carol, Tyreese. They _had_ to have made it out okay. She couldn't picture losing anyone else. They were all family now. They had been through everything together. Maggie had her mind set that they were going to find the others eventually, that they were still alive. They _had_ to be. Just the thought of it all made her stomach churn.

Maggie took a deep breath and let out a shaky sigh, wiping her face. She looked at Carl, Daryl, and Judith again and smiled to herself. She was thankful that they were all okay. She was the most thankful for Daryl, holding them together like glue. But she knew he needed them just as much, even though he always played the tough guy. She could see through it now. After all, she had been there with him when Merle was killed. She had seen that other side of Daryl, the vulnerable side, the side she really didn't want to think about. He still kept himself so well composed and Maggie tried to draw strength from that. Daryl had been through a lot and he was still here—so she could do it too.

Maggie tried to push it all aside as she lowered herself to the floor and curled up. There was no way she was going to crawl into bed with Daryl or Carl. She'd be just fine to sleep on the floor.

* * *

The abrupt sound of the passenger side door slamming jolted Daryl awake. He immediately noticed Maggie was missing before he looked up to see Carl peeking down from the top bunk. Judith had awakened but she stayed curled up on the bed.

Daryl jumped to his feet and threw the passenger side door open. He felt relieved to see Maggie right there, leaning against the side of the semi with her right hand, her back facing him. "You alright?"

Maggie slowly nodded her head. She was slightly doubled over and it was only obvious that she had gotten sick.

"It wasn't the Spaghetti-O's, was it?..."

Maggie turned to face Daryl now with a faint smile, "No, I just… I didn't sleep very well. I stayed up for a while thinking about things. But I'm okay."

"I didn't mean to doze off. Ya shoulda woke me up. I coulda slept on the damn floor." Daryl stepped back once Maggie started to move forward, giving her room to come back into the cab. She shut the door behind her.

"It's okay, really. Don't worry about it," Maggie replied.

Daryl grabbed a bottle of water from the backpack and handed it to her. She smiled as she took it from him and allowed herself a drink.

After everyone was fairly wide awake, Judith had picked out peaches for breakfast again. It received a slight groan from Carl and Daryl but they split what they had and made do. The plan was to scout the cars and see if there was anything worth taking.

Carl still carried the backpack with him as they split up to search. Judith stayed with Carl as Daryl and Maggie went their own separate ways. Daryl moved forward and gave himself quite a bit of distance between them. He figured if he went ahead and checked further down the road that it might prove to be a good thing, that maybe he'd see any sign of danger approaching before it could sneak up on them… Though walkers didn't exact walk straight down the road.

Daryl glanced around the few abandoned vehicles that were surrounding him and decided to check the red BMW. Luckily, there were no decayed bodies within the car as he tried the passenger side door. It was unlocked as he ducked into the automobile and managed to get on his knees on the passenger seat to search the backseat. He shifted everything around and tossed the useless items aside, sighing. Nothing they could use.

Giving up for a moment, Daryl sat back in the passenger seat and tried the glove box. He slightly grinned to himself once he realized what he had found. He grabbed the pack of Marlboros and out of curiosity checked to see how many were left. Just as he suspected by the weight of the small box, the lighter accompanied five cigarettes. It wasn't that he missed smoking by no means but he figured it would be something to help take the edge off when need be. If he was going to be stuck trying to keep everyone safe, he'd need something to calm his nerves.

Well, hell… One cigarette _now_ wouldn't hurt.

Daryl took a cigarette from the package and set it between his lips as he gave the lighter a try. It took a few flicks before a small flame burst forth as he brought it to the tip of the cigarette and lit it. He stuffed the lighter back into the package and took a short drag. It was a little stale and strong for his liking, but at least it was something.

He got back to his feet just outside the red Beamer and shut the door, sliding the remaining cigarettes and lighter into his back pocket while still balancing the lit one on his lips. As he glanced around, he noticed the others were out of sight. He figured it wouldn't hurt to maybe just keep this a secret. He couldn't imagine Maggie giving him a lecture over smoking—the world had gone to shit years ago, what harm could a few damn cigarettes do on top of being infected?

As Daryl decided to walk a little farther forward, glancing into the cars that he passed, he could hear Judith giggle from somewhere behind him. Whether the nicotine was really helping or it was the fact that they weren't in any immediate danger, the sound of Judith's giggle brought the slightest smirk to Daryl's face. Of course she was being rather loud in order to be heard from that distance but at least they were okay. Carl must have found something entertaining to share with her.

Daryl took another drag of the cigarette before he flicked the ashes off of the end, coming to a halt. He froze at the sound of tires on pavement, the hum of a running engine belonging to that of a motor vehicle. He focused his attention towards the noise and spotted the old Ford Explorer coming to a halt just down the road towards the end of the car jam. He slightly ducked down and watched as four men exited from the SUV. Their voices were loud enough to be heard from where Daryl stood, but not loud enough to understand what they were saying to one another. It was when the four men began to walk into the graveyard of cars that Daryl cursed under his breath.

_Where the hell are all these people coming from and how are they still living?_

Daryl quickly dropped the lit cigarette and smashed it out with his boot. He stayed low to the ground as he made his way back towards where he left the others. He spotted Carl and Judith in no time at all, grabbing Carl by the back of his shirt and yanking him down. Carl whipped back to look just as Daryl put his finger in front of his own lips. Daryl could see the level of concern sink into Carl's mind as he stared back at him.

"Where's Maggie?" Daryl jumped right to it with no time to waste.

Carl shook his head, "I don't know. I think she went over that way." He pointed across the road and closer towards the approaching men that he was oblivious to. "She went up ahead like you did to check the cars. What'd you see?"

"Four men heading this way, most likely armed. Keep low and stay quiet. Keep an eye on your sister." Daryl took off without another word, weaving in and out of the cars in search for Maggie. He had his crossbow out and ready truly hoping that he wouldn't have to use it, though he knew better than that.

As the four men moved further into the car jam and Daryl moved towards them on the opposite side of the road, he could begin to make out what they were saying.

"You really think we should be wasting the gas to come all the way back here? They're probably dead anyway. Which means more supplies for us and less faces to feed."

"Yeah, but what if they found more supplies? You know it can never hurt to have too much."

"Greed's not the answer, my friend."

"Oh well. It might be worth coming back here."

"There wasn't much left last time. What makes you think it'll be different?"

Daryl started to panic as their voices grew louder and more audible with each closing step. Maggie was nowhere to be seen as he kept glancing over all of the abandoned vehicles. She couldn't have gotten too far and surely she could hear those men. That still didn't mean she was safe, wherever she was. As much as Daryl wanted to be pissed off at the circumstances, he couldn't get over the fear that those men would find her before he did.

_No more splitting up. Fuck._


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** I feel like my writing is slacking and I don't know how to elaborate on that. And I've just decided to come to the conclusion that chapters are not always going to work out in being the length that I am trying to achieve. This is the shortest chapter I've ever written but it felt like a good place to stop. Ramble ramble…

* * *

Daryl rounded the next vehicle before he finally spotted Maggie just a few steps away. She was ducked down beside a car facing the direction the voices were coming from. Daryl reached out to grab her shoulder but quickly realized he must have startled her as she whipped around and trained her pistol on him. Daryl put his hands up and Maggie sighed as he pushed the gun back down.

Maggie kept her voice low, "Where's Carl and Judith?"

"Told 'em to lay low. Had to find where you disappeared to," Daryl explained.

The voices belonging to the men grew louder as their footsteps grew nearer. "…Why'd we send the most retarded ones out to get supplies anyway? They probably got lost."

That comment received a chuckle from the other men as Daryl pushed Maggie down lower to the ground, practically lying on the ground himself to ensure they were out of sight. Maggie covered her mouth to try and silence her breathing, still holding her gun. Daryl kept a firm grip on the crossbow.

The men had come to a halt just on the other side of the car they were hiding behind. Maggie slowly turned to look back at Daryl as he put his hand up to make sure she stayed quiet. Instead of trying to look and see where the men were exactly, Daryl listened. He refused to move an inch after the last encounter he and Carl had in the pharmacy—though there weren't any cans he could accidentally kick. He just didn't want to risk it.

It wasn't long before the four men continued walking again. Once they were a little further away, Daryl got up and pulled Maggie along to try and increase the gap between them and the men. The only thing they could really do at the time was continue to be as stealthy as possible and hide behind another vehicle. The two of them couldn't risk taking on four men, no matter how much they wanted to try. Not only that but they had to keep things as quiet as possible. If they attracted a group of walkers, they'd have nowhere left to run.

But of course as they rounded the next vehicle a walker had come from out of nowhere, its feet dragging across the pavement. As soon as it made its way around the vehicle coming face to face with them, it let out a growl and reached out for them. Maggie quickly dispatched it by slamming her knife into its face. Daryl grabbed it and slowly lowered it to the ground as quietly as possible to avoid the inevitable 'thump'.

It didn't matter though because the walker's growl was loud enough to be heard from down the stretch of road. Since it fell silent immediately after, it was a dead giveaway that someone had killed it, and the four men knew it. Their conversation dropped off mid-sentence, telling Daryl and Maggie that they needed to put their guard up and get out of there.

Daryl did his best at trying to peek through the windows of the car they were now leaning against. He could vaguely make out the four figures, all of them facing towards were they currently stood. Daryl grabbed Maggie's hand and pulled her along, moving closer towards the front of the vehicle, correspondingly with the footfalls of the four men.

The men began to space out though in an attempt to cover more ground. Daryl kept moving backward with Maggie, trying to put as much distance between them as possible. He spotted a truck that sat up high enough to slide under yet low enough that it wasn't completely obvious. He pointed it out to Maggie as she nodded and slid under the truck. Daryl followed her lead as quietly as possible.

Once they were situated, they watched as the four men came back together and discovered the downed walker. Nobody said a word as they began to space back out again in search for who could have done it.

"Stay here," Daryl whispered, slowly inching his way back out from under the truck. They were far enough away that he could start to plan his attack.

"Daryl—" Maggie hissed. "Don't."

Daryl managed to come up behind one of them, taking one small step at a time. He couldn't even hear his own footsteps but the man turned around just then, as if he could sense his presence. The man opened his mouth to say something just as his eyes locked onto Daryl's before Daryl shot the crossbow and hit him between the eyes. Daryl cringed as the man's body dropped, knowing that just gave away his location again. But it was either that or the man would have yelled—either way he was busted.

With no time to retrieve the bolt, Daryl ducked behind another vehicle close by as the three remaining men came running to the noise.

"Dammit! Alright, we're not fucking around anymore. You see any sign of movement, I don't give a damn. You shoot to fucking kill. This person wants to play games—oh, we'll play alright."

Daryl could hear a slight _snap_ as he cursed to himself under his breath. He knew that was his bolt, and with it being snapped in two there was no way he could salvage it.

If that wasn't bad enough, the men started to show off their intelligence. They began to make distractions, slamming car doors, throwing different items that they found scattered about. They were trying to confuse him on where they were, throw off their location, and they were succeeding. Daryl kept his back flat against the vehicle. He couldn't really pick up on where they were specifically. He tried to ignore all the commotion and listen to only their footsteps but it was too hard to make out.

Daryl moved towards the guy he put down and picked up a piece of the broken bolt. He had five left now, and four bullets if that's what it had to come down to. He was hoping for a more stealthy attack but it seemed like that option had long expired now.

With all the ruckus the men were causing, he didn't hear the one who managed to sneak up behind him. The only thing he felt was the man's arm closing around his neck and holding him in a chokehold, the man's other hand covering his mouth and nose.

"I got him! Over here!" The man bellowed, squeezing his arm tighter around his neck.

Daryl panicked as he couldn't scream, let alone breathe. He dropped the crossbow and immediately grabbed for his knife. He knew he wouldn't be able to fight his way out of the man's grasp, but lucky for him, he had other plans.

Daryl used his knife and blindly connected with the man's side, stabbing the blade in. The man released his hold and stumbled back with a slight yelp of pain, the knife still protruding from his side. Daryl quickly turned around and grabbed him by his shirt, jabbing the broken bolt into his eye and taking him down much similar to a walker. The body hit the ground with a 'thud' as he was just able to snatch his crossbow back, the other two men flanking him from both sides, cornering him against the vehicle with their pistols trained on him.

"Don't move."

Daryl nodded to act as though he were complying. He had to think fast. There was no way he could take them both out and get away without being shot. Carl was with Judith and he told Maggie to stay put—assuming she listened, she wasn't going to come to his rescue. Perhaps he had one so-called "trick" up his sleeve.

"Catch!" Daryl tossed the crossbow at one of the men, throwing him off guard as he fumbled to actually catch the damn thing. Daryl quickly pulled his pistol and took the shot, shooting the guy without his crossbow first before turning on the other and taking him out as well, all in one swift motion. Both were headshots as they hit the ground. Daryl leaned against the vehicle behind him and sighed in relief.

_That_ was too close for comfort.


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** I apologize for the hiatus and slacking off on the last couple chapters or so. Time to try and get back into the swing of all things Daryl, Maggie, Carl, and Judith!

* * *

Maggie bolted at the sound of the two gunshots, her heart racing. _Dammit, Daryl Dixon. I knew I shouldn't have listened to you!_ Multiple scenarios played through her head as she weaved in and out of the traffic snarl. The prevailing thought was that since there had been two gunshots, Daryl had taken one of them down and the last man that was still standing had shot Daryl.

She never felt more relieved when she rounded the next vehicle, pistol raised, only to see Daryl on his feet and unharmed. She had gotten herself so worked up that she couldn't even manage a small sigh. After all, it was only her, Daryl, Carl, and Judith left. The others could still be out there somewhere but it didn't help them in their current situation—and they certainly couldn't afford to lose anyone else.

"You about gave me a heart attack," Maggie muttered as she lowered the gun and walked over to him.

"I about gave myself one," Daryl shrugged. "That guy's hand tasted like shit…" He spit to the side and wiped the backside of his hand across his mouth. Maggie figured she wouldn't ask.

Daryl tucked his pistol back away, retrieved his knife, and then picked up his crossbow. He slung it over his shoulder before glancing down at the dead bodies, "That was a damn close call."

"Well I'm glad you're alright," Maggie replied. She watched as he bent down and plucked the firearm from one of the men's hands, releasing the clip to check it. He immediately cursed aloud.

"He didn't even have any more rounds!" Daryl threw the useless weapon towards the trees. The odds of them finding any spare ammo lying around these days didn't seem likely. "Damn piece of shit. I just wasted two bullets on these assholes. Had I known, I would have gone about that a whole different way," he shook his head.

Maggie frowned at her findings as she checked the other pistol from the last man, "Yeah, this guy didn't have anything either." She tossed the gun back onto the pavement with a clatter, "Go figure."

Since the men weren't carrying anything else of value on them other than the clothing on their backs, Maggie and Daryl headed back toward the sleeper cab in hopes of finding Carl and Judith still there in one piece. Judith was the first to make her appearance known as she ran as fast as her little legs could carry her, crashing into Daryl and hugging his leg. A smirk played on Daryl's lips as he ruffled her hair.

"Glad you two are okay. Kind of felt like shit having to sit that one out while you two played in the car maze," Carl remarked. He was leaning against the semi with his arms crossed over his chest but stood up straight once they were nearer.

"You had your run in the pharmacy," Maggie reminded him. "Besides, everyone's okay and that's all that matters."

"What'd ya say we check their vehicle and see if we can get it running? Before any walkers decide to head this way," Daryl suggested.

It didn't take much to realize Daryl had a point. Popping off two rounds was sure to go unmissed by the walking dead. There was no telling where they were hiding and how many people were even truly left after the outbreak so any little sound was certain to draw them in—especially now.

Judith stepped back from Daryl as Maggie grabbed her hand. Carl slid the backpack securely onto his back that sat at his feet. Daryl led the way towards the SUV the other survivors had driven not too long ago. Maggie could only hope that it had enough gas to at least get them out of here. It was that or they were stuck with the sleeper cab, which wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.

Daryl immediately took to the driver's seat as Maggie ushered Judith into the back. Carl entered from the other side of the large sedan and joined Judith, tossing the backpack onto the floor. As if on cue, Maggie could see a handful of walkers beginning to emerge from the tree line and head for the road. She hurried around the front and hopped into the passenger side, slamming her palm down over the lock out of habit. The walkers weren't smart enough to open doors thankfully.

"What's the hold up?" Carl leaned forward onto the center console. Judith tried to peek through out of curiosity having been blocked from sight.

Daryl was searching the front of the vehicle, flipped the visor down before pushing it back up, and huffed. "One of them has the damn keys."

Two walkers pounded up against the side of the SUV just then, both of them on Maggie and Carl's side. Maggie jumped as she was startled by the noise and Judith let out a small whimper.

"Why would anyone in their right mind take their vehicle keys with them in the end of the world?" Maggie wondered aloud. It was unlikely to run into other survivors nowadays. Today just happened to be a coincidence.

"You can't hotwire it?" Carl asked, scooting more towards the middle of the backseat and pulling Judith close.

"What do I look like?" Daryl shot back at him. "Hell no I don't know how to hotwire a car!"

Three more walkers joined now as they beat up against the left side of the vehicle. Daryl didn't even flinch as Judith cried out, "What we do? Make 'em go way!"

Maggie glanced back at the siblings, ready to console Judith the best she could but stopped when she saw that Carl had her pulled close, telling her that everything was okay. So Maggie looked over at the ignition before looking to Daryl, "Move."

"What?" Daryl furrowed his brow, confused.

"Move, trade me places," Maggie elaborated as she was already bringing her feet up and onto the seat her bottom was planted on previously.

Daryl didn't ask any more questions as he worked his way halfway between the front and the backseats to allow Maggie enough room to pass. They both situated themselves down in the seats and Maggie placed her hand palm side up towards Daryl, "Your knife."

"You actually know what you're doing or are you just fooling me?" Daryl hesitantly handed his knife over after pulling it from the sheath on his belt.

"I guess we'll find out." Maggie dug the blade between the panels that surrounded the steering wheel. Having wedged the knife between the two objects she was able to easily pop them apart, pulling them off and exposing the once hidden wires of varying colors.

The movies didn't make it seem too much of a difficult task. And of course there was a time when she went with her half brother Shawn to a junkyard and they found an old decent Chevy. Shawn had tried to hotwire it to see if he could get it to start, in which case he had. It had been a good few years since then but Maggie felt certain she could pull this off. She _had_ to at this point because the walkers weren't exactly going to take off anytime soon. They'd most likely find a way to bust the windows eventually if they didn't get out of there.

Maggie was surprised that Daryl and Carl kept quiet. She was waiting for one, if not both, of them to start up on harassing her. But she noticed their attention was drawn to the exterior of the SUV and the current threat that was slowly encasing them in a circle. She kept working with the wires, using Daryl's knife when necessary until she found what she hoped her memory served right. She found the two red wires that should be the power wires and cut them first. After striping the ends of both of them the best she could, she twisted them together.

"Whatever you just did, you're making progress." Daryl cued her in. The lights surrounding the odometer had come to life as well as the middle console, the clock flashing a random time at them.

Maggie wiped at her forehead and grinned at her work. She thanked Shawn in her head as she got back to the other wires, quickly finding the brown ones that were the starter wires. She bit her lip before she cut them and carefully placed them against the steering wheel before striping away at them. Once enough of the wire was exposed, she handed Daryl's knife back to him and touched them together briefly. There was a slight rumble that came from the engine and Maggie pulled the wires apart again, making sure not to touch the exposed wires.

Maggie sighed, "Okay… I need something to keep these from just hanging out in the open. I imagine the shock wouldn't feel too great."

Daryl immediately checked the glove box while Carl sifted through the back of the vehicle. It didn't take long before Daryl slammed the thing shut and shook his head, "Just hand me the damn wires and drive. I'll hold 'em."

"Are you sure?" Maggie glanced down at the wires. In order for Daryl to even hold them, he'd practically have his hands in her lap. Something that wasn't the most comfortable idea. "Maybe I could control the pedals and you can steer?" She offered instead.

Daryl cast a glance down at the wires in Maggie's hands and nodded, clearing his throat. It didn't seem like he realized just how Maggie was positioned with the wires. "Alright, go." He reached over and gripped the steering wheel as Maggie put her foot down on the gas pedal. As the SUV began to lurch forward, the walkers were scrambling to try and keep up, their hands sliding across the windows until they were no more.

If this didn't constitute for the most awkward driving position, Maggie wasn't sure what would.

Once they were out of harm, the walkers now in the rearview mirror, Maggie laughed. Judith started to giggle right along with her even though she was clueless.

"You two are insane," Carl sighed. He turned to Judith, "And you too. You're instigating them."

"Was in-si-gating?" Judith furrowed her brows as she tried to pronounce the word.

"You're laughing so you're encouraging them," Carl tried to explain in simpler terms.

"Hey, at least we're out of that mess. I don't hear you complaining," Daryl shot back.

"Yeah, and you're all welcome," Maggie teased.

* * *

There was just under a quarter tank of gas left and they were running on fumes by the time the next town was in view. Maggie didn't even have to pull the wires apart to kill the engine as the SUV sputtered to an end. She climbed out of the driver's seat, cautious of the wires, and joined the others around the front. Without any other options, it was beginning to look like this was their new place to hunker down.

They walked forward into the town keeping an eye out for any intruders, walkers or otherwise. Daryl, Carl, and Maggie all had their weapons of choice readied if need be. Judith was hopping around from one foot to the other with too much energy to burn off. Peeking into different buildings as they passed gave them the sudden realization that everything was already gone.

"You think those guys have a camp set up nearby? Maybe there're more of them. Maybe they're the ones who swiped this place clean," Carl suggested. He was walking beside Daryl now the deeper they immersed themselves into the town.

"Could be," Daryl replied with a slight shrug.

Maggie felt a tug on her pant leg as she looked down to see Judith staring up at her with her shining blue eyes. She came to a halt while the boys continued to scout the place over yet not getting too far away.

"I have to _pee_," Judith announced, whispering the last word.

Maggie nodded, "Okay, hang on… Guys, can you hold up?" She called out to them quietly, instantly grabbing their attention as they turned back and retreated to their side. "Judith needs to take a little break. I just didn't want you two wandering off where we wouldn't be able to find you."

Carl and Daryl seemed to get the idea of what Maggie meant as they both nodded and stayed put. Maggie walked into the nearest building taking Judith's hand just as Daryl called out to her, "You sure about just waltzing right on in? You want us to follow?..."

Maggie dipped her head back out of the door and smiled, "We'll be fine. This place seems pretty deserted so far. But I have my knife and gun if there are any problems."

She continued to walk further into the little store and essentially started to head for the back. An actual restroom sounded a lot nicer than taking a squat in the grass somewhere. Besides, Judith was used to using toilets since she had technically spent most of her life in that house—the house that was long gone now. Maggie was just glad that she was potty trained because she couldn't imagine having to use diapers with her out here in the middle of nowhere with no one but Daryl and Carl.

But there was also another reason Maggie wanted to try a store for a restroom. There was a particular aisle she wanted to go down and she quickly spotted it along the way towards the back. She stared at small box for a moment before grabbing it and sighing, taking it with them. She found the women's restroom which was luckily more than one stall as she led Judith in and locked the door behind them in case of any walkers.

"Was that?" Judith stared at the box in Maggie's hand.

"I thought you said you had to pee," Maggie folded her arms and forced a smile, trying her best to ignore Judith's question. How was she suppose to explain _that_ to her?

"I do." Judith stayed put though, staring back and forth between the box and Maggie's face. She was persistent.

Maggie opened the box and handed one of the pregnancy tests to her, "It's a pee stick. You… pee on it to make sure you're healthy."

Judith's face lit up as she flipped the contraption over in her small hands, "I pee on it?" Maggie nodded and that was enough to stop the questions from Judith as she ran into the first stall and didn't even both to shut the door, dropping her pants and hopping onto the toilet seat.

It was a good thing Judith was too adorable for her own good because that was the only thing keeping Maggie together at that point. She had a bad feeling about this, a sinking feeling in her gut. She walked to the next stall and shut the door before she grabbed one of the tests and sat down staring at it. She didn't even want to run through all of the thoughts polluting her mind. At least not until she was certain. And even then, she wasn't sure she wanted to.

A couple minutes later and Maggie was standing outside of the stall with Judith as they both stared at the pregnancy tests, waiting. It was when they started to take on a different appearance that Maggie felt her stomach doing flips. She suddenly felt nauseated at the sight of the plus sign having to take a deep breath.

"How come yours is different?" Judith noticed, glancing between the two sticks.

Maggie fought back her tears and cleared her throat, hoping to keep her emotions at bay. She quickly came up with an explanation that Judith would buy. "It's different because I'm older. Yours means you're healthy for your age."

Judith slowly nodded even though she still looked confused. It didn't seem to bother her for long though because she instantly grabbed Maggie's hand and started for the door, "Let's go!"

Maggie tossed the sticks into the garbage and unlocked the door, leading the way out. She had to keep it together. There was no way she could tell Daryl and Carl. She just couldn't. What would she say? Furthermore, what would they all do?

She couldn't think about it. Not right now.

_She couldn't be pregnant. _


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any part of The Walking Dead. This is for entertainment purposes only.

**A/N:** I feel like I have lost all motivation for this story and yet I was kind of excited to get back to it. Ugh. So that's why it took quite a while for me to update.

* * *

Each minute that ticked by felt like hours waiting for Maggie and Judith to resurface from inside the small store. Daryl was beginning to lose his patience as all he could think about was that he and Carl should have followed just in case. They could have run into walkers or more of those men. It wasn't that Maggie was incapable of fighting either of them off, it just made Daryl feel a bit uneasy. Though he didn't hear anything unusual from inside the store to suggest that something had gone awry.

"You're gonna wear a hole in the ground if you keep pacing," Carl remarked.

Daryl stopped and rested his hands on his hips. He hadn't even realized he was pacing. He really hadn't even realized when he had become so concerned over the others—it just happened. After spending so many years together everyone felt like family. And now that they were dwindled down to just the four of them, of course Daryl would be wary of any little thing happening to any of them. It was his responsibility to keep them safe no matter what.

"Daryl, Daryl, Daryl!" Judith's shrill cry filled the air automatically putting Daryl on high alert and moving toward the door. Since the double doors to the store front were glass, Daryl could see Judith running straight for him. He sighed in relief when he saw Maggie not too far behind.

Judith collided into Daryl and giggled. "Guess what, guess what!"

"Calm down, Judith. Remember we have to be quiet," Carl stepped forward to remind his sister.

Judith sealed her lips in a straight line as she stared back at Carl. She glanced up at Daryl as if waiting for him to give her the go ahead.

"What?" Daryl asked her.

Judith smiled, "We peed on pee sticks!"

Daryl and Carl's faces fell at Judith's words, both of them looking to Maggie for an explanation. Maggie lowered her head and stared down at the ground while tucking her hair behind her ears.

"Maggie?" Daryl stared at her. He was almost positive he already knew what she would have to say. She had her bouts with nausea and if _she_ was questioning whether she was pregnant or not—using a pregnancy test—all signs pointed to _pregnant_.

Maggie bit her lip and shut her eyes before providing them with a nod. She was trying to fight back tears but failed as a couple rolled down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away though before taking a shaky breath. "I'm pregnant."

"What's the matter? What's 'pregnant'? I thought you said you was healthy!" Judith crossed her arms.

Maggie looked even closer to tears after Judith's words. No matter how much Daryl suspected this outcome, Maggie's confirmation put everything in full motion. He was a little shocked to say the least. So not only did he have to worry about Judith and Carl being an infant and teenager, but now a pregnant Maggie?

"She is healthy. And everything will be just fine," Carl spoke up, taking the reins. "Let's just get set up somewhere and call it a night."

Daryl was thankful for Carl speaking up because he was still at a loss for words. At least the kid had a point: this day was over whether the sun was still shining or not. Judith grabbed Carl's hand while Carl once again took the lead. Daryl waited for Maggie to follow before he started walking after the other two.

Carl led the way into a smaller building, something they could easily barricade from walkers. The kid wasted no time tossing the backpack to the ground and went right to work on fixing up the busted out windows as best he could using shelving units and anything else he could find. Daryl helped him out while Maggie and Judith retreated to the middle of the vacant store.

"So we eat, get some rest, and keep moving. Right?" Maggie sat down on the floor and grabbed the backpack.

"You guys go ahead and eat. Not hungry." Daryl truly wasn't all that hungry and he figured the others could use it more than him anyway. Especially Judith and Maggie. They didn't have much left as it was. It made Daryl regret having never of gone back to their home. Maybe some of the others did make it out. Maybe those men hadn't completely raided the house of supplies. But that dream was long gone now since they'd traveled so many miles in the opposite direction.

"Me either." Carl walked to the back of the store to make sure it was secure before he returned. Apparently Carl was thinking along the same lines.

"I know what you two are doing. Please don't." Maggie set the can of food down and stared at it. "We split what we have just like always. I don't want to be treated any differently because… because of all of this."

Daryl and Carl remained silent. Carl lowered his head and shuffled his feet while Daryl was busying himself by glancing around outside. There was one thing Daryl was good at and that was changing the topic. And he made damn sure to do that.

"Gonna go take a little walk, see if there's anything we can grab before we move on." Daryl was already working on moving one of the shelving units out enough to squeeze through and access a window. He had his crossbow and he figured that was more than enough. The town looked like it had already been raided as it was but it didn't hurt to look. He would be thankful if they ever came across another damn house. At least a house that seemed sturdy enough to stay for a while.

Daryl had already slipped out of the window and back onto the street before anyone could say anything. Everything seemed quiet and they would be fine on their own for a few minutes. He wasn't going far.

* * *

Carl didn't stop him from leaving, though neither did Maggie or Judith. He figured it was just the exhaustion taking over, not wanting to argue. It probably didn't help any with Maggie's news still fresh in all their minds. Of course he didn't want to think about it. He assumed Daryl didn't either and that was probably the reasoning behind him taking off for a while.

Maggie sighed and rested her head against her palm. She muttered a small "thank you" but for what, Carl wasn't entirely sure. He just figured it was best not to ask. Silence was always easier.

"You okay?" Judith tugged on Maggie's sleeve.

Carl glanced back over at Maggie just in time to see her tearing up. She covered her hand over her mouth and stumbled back to her feet before pushing her way out the back door. The door slammed shut behind her, cutting her out of sight and causing Carl and Judith to run after her. But Carl only needed to open the door a crack to find her leaning against the wall just outside of it.

"Maggie?" Carl stayed in the doorway to keep the door propped open just in case. Maggie was hunched over having thrown up. Carl could only guess it was due to the pregnancy. Maybe it was from everything that was happening all together.

"You're sick." Judith frowned.

Maggie wiped the back of her arm across her face and stood back up straight, taking a deep breath. "…I can't do this." Her voice came out as a strained whisper trying to choke back the tears.

"Everything will be okay…" Carl tried to reassure her. In all honesty, he didn't know what to say.

"No, it won't. It's not okay now and I don't see it getting any better." Maggie's voice cracked as she tried her hardest not to break down. "We don't have _anything_."

"No," Carl argued, "We'll get through this and we'll be okay. We always have, haven't we? Between the four of us, we have nothing to worry about. Besides, we have Daryl. He knows his way around better than anyone."

"We have Daryl _now_. But how many more years do you think he has in him at this rate? Months? Weeks? _Days_?" A few tears ran down Maggie's face as she quickly wiped at them. "We can't just rely on him alone. We're the ones who are going to end up getting him killed. And with me being pregnant…"

"Don't cry." Judith stuck out her bottom lip. She reached out and grabbed Maggie's hand and tugged, "Come back inside."

Carl held the door open as Judith ushered Maggie back into the small building. He pulled the door shut and locked it before turning back to the others. They were sitting on the floor once again, Judith leaning against Maggie and hugging her arm. Maggie looked like she was trying her best to keep herself together.

What she had said about Daryl was a little cruel but it was also partially true. Or at least it felt that way. Daryl was probably better off surviving on his own; less supplies, less worry. But Daryl would never leave them to fend on their own and he wasn't going anywhere.

"I'm sorry," Maggie muttered.

"It's okay." Carl walked over and sat in front of her. He grabbed the can of food and worked on getting it open before eating a little himself and passing it to Maggie. He forced a smile, "I won't treat you any different. But you do need to eat. Judith too."

There was a crunch of broken glass as the three turned to see Daryl making his way back inside. He pushed the shelving unit back up against the broken window before walking over to join everyone.

Maggie smiled, half choking on a laugh. "Look at you. The new and improved Santa Claus."

Daryl only scoffed with the slightest smirk. He had returned with a couple more cans of food, a zip-up jacket that looked like it could fit Judith, and an old fleece blanket. At least it was something.

"Now that you're back, we are _all_ eating and we are _all_ going to get some rest." Carl spoke up, mostly referring to Daryl and making sure he caught on.

Daryl nodded, "Alright. That's fine by me. I'm tired as all hell."

* * *

It was sometime in the middle of the night as Maggie found herself wide awake once again. The only thing different this time was that she had a confirmation to what she was already thinking deep down. She truly didn't want to think about it. And she felt like a terrible person for admitting it to herself, but she was even thinking about possible ways to force a miscarriage or abort the pregnancy. She couldn't go through with it, not without their home, supplies, and furthermore Glenn. There had to be some way to stop it.

Carl and Judith were passed out asleep, Judith curled up against him. Daryl was lying on his back with his hands propped behind his head but Maggie had a feeling he wasn't sleeping either. He probably _couldn't_ sleep after today.

Maggie readjusted herself against the wall and buried her face in her hands. Crying wouldn't get her anywhere and as long as she didn't throw up again, she was good. She definitely didn't want to wake anyone.

There was a slight shuffling noise as Maggie unburied her face and glimpsed over towards Daryl. He was awake, just like Maggie had suspected, and met her stare. He walked over and sat beside her with what sounded like an exhausted sigh.

"You don't have to stay up. You need to sleep," Maggie tried.

"And you don't?" Daryl glanced over at her. He motioned with his hand as if he wanted her to continue. "Lay it on me. What d'ya got tickin' up there?"

Maggie was a little shocked that Daryl was pretty much asking for her to ramble to him but really, there wasn't anyone else. So she was thankful for him to offer—she just wasn't sure she really wanted to go there though.

"I'm serious. You and me ain't gonna get any sleep until you get it off your chest."

Maggie sighed. "All I can think about is Glenn and whether he's even alive or not. My sister. My _dad_… I don't know what to do. And Lori…" She paused a moment before continuing, "It's the end of the world. There's nothing _left_. How am I supposed to have a baby? What if I _do_ die trying to give birth? What if the baby dies inside me and rips me open? And even if the baby lives, where are we going to go shopping for the necessities—diapers, bottles, clothes?"

"Don't," Daryl shook his head. "You can't let yourself think like that."

"Then how am I supposed to think?" Maggie bit her lip and wiped at her face.

"I don't know shit about the Grimes' family health history, alright? But I'm pretty sure the whole reason that things ended… what happened to Lori, that was because of her own health history. Right? She had problems with Carl."

Maggie choked out a second laugh for the day receiving a confused look from Daryl.

"What?"

"You really do eavesdrop, don't you?" Maggie forced a weak smile.

Daryl scratched the back of his neck. "That's beside the point..."

Daryl didn't say anymore after that and Maggie allowed the silence to stretch on for a moment before she thanked him. Even if he didn't say much, she knew he had her back. That was enough for her. For now anyway. It was enough to get her through day by day.

Maggie felt a little more at ease after saying what had been on her mind aloud and she quickly found herself resting her head against Daryl's shoulder. She muttered another small thank you and grabbed his hand, lacing her fingers with his. She wrapped her other arm around his arm and hugged herself to him, grateful that he didn't pull away—grateful that she still had him. They would get through this together.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** Okay, I have found a little motivation from a video game. (Yeah...) And I jumped forward a bit with this chapter.

* * *

"Tag! You're it!" Judith giggled as she slapped Carl and ran away. Carl groaned but he cracked a smile as he ran off after her causing her to squeal in excitement. Tag had become one of Judith's favorite games. Daryl and Maggie just kept walking while keeping an eye on them. They hadn't come across any walkers lately and well, Judith had to have her moments. They couldn't force her to completely change her ways and make her obedient—she wasn't a dog. She just wanted to have some fun.

It had probably been close to a couple months or so since they left and were separated from the group. Maggie's belly was starting to become noticeable but she really wasn't all that big. Other than that, not much had changed. They stuck to their routines and they were doing pretty well for themselves so far. Far from how they were living previously with a roof over their heads 24/7 and having necessities when needed. But it worked.

They were currently walking alongside the highway. It kept them on the right path towards a small town or city and also gave them enough room to be able to see around them and ensure that there were no walkers in the immediate area. Only Daryl had the expertise of the woods.

"Daryl? What's wrong?"

Daryl snapped out of his slight daze and turned to face Maggie. He shook his head before returning his stare out into the woods. Or overtop of the woods. There was smoke in the air off in the distance and he was trying to figure out whether he was really seeing it or not. "You see that… right?" Daryl pointed toward the billowing smoke.

Maggie looked out to where Daryl had pointed, squinting from the sun. "Smoke?" Her face lit up with recognition, "Do you think…?"

"Only one way to find out." Daryl adjusted his crossbow on his shoulder before calling Carl and Judith over. "Change of plans."

"What's going on?" Carl ceased all activity with Judith and led her back over towards the others.

"There's smoke and we're going to check it out," Maggie filled him in.

"You really think it could be them? What if it's someone else?" Carl glanced back and forth between the two.

"At this rate, it's a chance I'm willin' to take." Daryl started the trek through the woods as he heard the other three follow in his footsteps, the crunching of twigs beneath their feet.

He hadn't meant to come off as sounding petty. He knew it was a risk to go and check it out. He was risking all of their lives on a glimmer of hope that the smoke meant there was a fire, and the fire could mean that Rick and the others were there, that they were alive. It was easier to assume that everyone else was dead because really, what were the odds of running into them again? It wasn't like they could just pick up a phone.

The deeper they went into the woods they began to run into a few walkers. Daryl had spotted the first one a few yards off, placing an arm out at his side to stop everyone before taking aim and shooting it down with the crossbow. He moved forward to retrieve the bolt, clean it, and reload it as quickly as possible while keeping an eye out. He only had two bolts left after however long they had been on their own, dwindled down from five.

Carl and Maggie were practically back to back on the lookout for walkers in the vicinity with Judith between them. They started moving again once Daryl was ready. Maggie took out a nearby walker with her knife before retreating back into the little formation they had going. Carl veered off and sliced the machete clean through the next walker's neck, severing its head as it collapsed to the ground. He stomped down on its head to ultimately kill it and jumped back to the others.

This was why sticking close to the highway always seemed to work out better for them. There weren't near as many walkers traveling down the road as there were roaming through the trees. But nobody said a word. They all wanted to see for themselves what the smoke led to. Taking out a few walkers along the way was no problem.

But walkers seemed to keep multiplying. Those few walkers turned into a herd of close to twenty, maybe even more.

Judith tried her best to stay in between the three of them as the others did their best to keep it that way. There was no backup plan. They couldn't just run and hide, hope that the walkers lost their scent and went away. They were literally in the middle of the woods at this point with nothing in sight but trees.

Daryl shot walkers down working from all angles, pivoting on his feet, to try and keep the walkers at bay while still being able to retrieve the bolts. If they let too many of them get close, it'd be too much for them to handle. With his mind occupied on the task at hand, he wasn't quite looking where he was stepping. The next thing he knew, the back of his head collided with the ground and he was looking at the world upside down.

Daryl shook his head in an attempt to refocus his vision. He was hanging from a branch by his right ankle, a spring snare trap someone had set and he had become the victim. And of course now of all times.

He released a string of curses as he tried to get his sight straight. He had dropped his damn crossbow when he hit his head and it was now long out of reach beneath him. Not that it would have done him a whole lot of good. The only problem was that he was still low enough to be walker bait. Luckily, he had his knife and he wasn't about to let that happen.

The first walker grabbed onto Daryl's shoulder but that was as far as it got before Daryl drove the blade into its head. It wasn't as bad as he thought it would be, hanging upside down. He was a little nervous that he'd miss his target.

"A little help over here—" Daryl called out as he shoved the next walker back before stabbing it between the eyes. He knew Carl and Maggie already had their hands full and he hated having to call out for help, but he was stuck. Even if he could reach up and cut the rope around his ankle it wouldn't do him any good with his crossbow directly under him. The fall would hurt plenty enough without landing on the weapon. The last thing he needed was to break something, whether it be his crossbow or a bone.

"Hold on!" Maggie slammed a walker against a nearby tree, her arm pinning its neck as she drove her knife into its temple. Carl took care of the walker that was coming up behind Maggie and Daryl was still doing his best from where he was.

But when Daryl glanced back over towards the others, he panicked. Maybe panicking wasn't something Daryl did a whole lot but when he saw two walkers headed straight for Carl and Judith, he knew he had to act. Carl was trying to protect Maggie and Judith the best he could but there were too many. So Daryl drew the Ruger that he had tucked into the back of his waistband, aimed, and took the shot. He had nine more where that came from—if it came down to it.

The single walker dropped but the gunshot caught Carl's attention long enough to turn back and take out the remaining one that was behind him. Relief washed over Daryl in that moment before he brought his own attention back to the threat at hand. He felt like a damn piñata swaying in the air after another walker practically charged at him, grabbing him by his shoulders and trying to clamp its jaw shut on his neck. Daryl gave the vile thing a forceful shove as he quickly tucked the pistol back away and readied his knife. They really couldn't afford to use their ammo but the shot Daryl took was necessary.

No matter how many walkers they took down, they still seemed to be multiplying and spawning from out of thin air. Daryl figured if they made it out of this alive there was no way in hell he was going to make this mistake again. Maybe it'd be different if he wasn't trapped hanging upside down from a damn tree. They could have at least attempted to make a run for it.

Gunfire filled the air just moments later as Daryl turned the best he could to see Maggie and Carl crouch down with Judith between them, the walkers near them dropping to the ground. Daryl couldn't see anyone just yet but he felt a little wary. Rick and the others didn't have that kind of firepower. Surely they wouldn't have been able to grab much in their haste to get out of there. _If_ they even got out of there.

According to Daryl's count, there were five figures that emerged from behind trees and started closing in on them. This group never once laid off their triggers as they shot away at the walkers, dropping them left and right. They made it look so unbelievably simple. But that's what a good supply of ammunition could do.

Once the foreign group was by their side it was easy to tell that they were all men. Two of them approached Judith, Maggie, and Carl, two others kept an eye out for more walkers, and the last guy had made his way over to Daryl.

The man kicked Daryl's crossbow out of the way. "You might want to put the knife away. For your own safety."

Daryl gathered what he was hinting at and followed his instruction just before the man cut the rope and freed him. Daryl landed hard on his back, gritting his teeth from the pain that shot up from his spine. He supposed he probably should have moved the Ruger too. He just didn't want these men to know he was armed. But then again, there was a gunshot that obviously came from one of the three.

"You guys alright? We heard a gunshot. Gotta tell ya, it's been a while since we've seen some new faces 'round these here parts." One of the men closer to Maggie and the others spoke up.

Daryl worked his way back onto his feet, scooping up the Horton and allowing it to hang from his shoulder. He caught Carl glancing over in his direction and Daryl gave him a curt nod.

"Yeah, we're good. Thanks for the save," Carl replied. Daryl could tell the kid was already eyeing these men over. It wouldn't surprise him if they knew the men back on the highway and in the pharmacy.

"Not a problem. Glad we could help." The man turned his attention to Judith who was half hidden behind Maggie and grinned. "Aren't you just the cutest little thing?" Judith didn't say anything nor did she move from her location. Maggie and Carl stayed fairly stiff in their spots as well.

Daryl stepped forward, none too fond of the way the man was staring at Judith, all eyes seeming to land on him due to his sudden movement. "Don't suppose you're the ones that got a fire goin'?"

"That'd be us. Burning some of these things is all." The man motioned toward the numerous bodies of walkers that littered the ground around them. "Hard to just dispose of them any ol' way."

Maggie nodded. "We saw the smoke above the trees. Thought we'd come try and check it out."

"Well listen, this probably isn't the best place to be having small talk. If y'all want to come on back with us you're more than welcome. We've got food and plenty of room if you need to stay a while and rest up. Encounters with the infected can be exhausting."

"Food?" Judith stepped out from behind Maggie. She glanced up at Maggie, then Carl, and over to Daryl.

The man that had spoken previously looked to Daryl, assuming he was their spokesperson. "What'll it be?"

Of course something like this would happen. A group of men come to the rescue and make them an offer they'd be stupid to refuse. But it felt like Woodbury all over again, people they couldn't trust. Guns and ammo were hard to come by these days and these men took down the walkers like they didn't have a care in the world. They must have more where that came from.

After looking over at the others, knowing full well that they didn't have much for food and with Maggie being pregnant and Judith seeming eager, it was hard for Daryl to say no. He couldn't. "If you don't mind the extra company, we're in." If it were truly up to him, if he were alone, he'd turn them down and walk away. But he couldn't do that to Judith, Maggie, and Carl. And he couldn't make his suspicions known out of fear the group of men could turn hostile in the blink of an eye. He'd just keep his guard up and keep a close eye on everyone.

"Alright then," the speaker for their group smiled. "Just come on this way. Oh, and uh… watch your step. You got lucky you only found the spring snare."

Daryl examined the area a little more closely and bit back a curse. How in the hell had he not seen it sooner? These people had the woods booby trapped. And once he spotted a bear trap tucked away under some brush he couldn't help but cringe. At least nobody came close to it.

Daryl picked Judith up and carried her while sticking close to Carl and Maggie. He didn't want to risk Judith weaving around too much and getting caught in a trap. Then he would kill these guys. They hung back a little ways as they followed the five men.

"You sure about this?" Maggie whispered.

"Just play it cool. We don't have shit so there's no need for them to attack us. Keep an eye out but don't let on that you're suspicious," Daryl explained.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** Hooray for an update! I actually wrote this one out in my notebook first. How ingenious of me, haha.

* * *

After hiking through the rest of the woods, the group followed the men into a clearing where houses came into view; a whole subdivision that was still standing. Maggie and Carl exchanged glances with a slight smirk. Maybe these people were alright. Maybe they could really help. But of course, they weren't about to put their guard down that easily.

"You guys have this whole subdivision?" Carl questioned.

"Us and the rest of our group, sure do. Been working at it for years now."

"It definitely shows…" Maggie mumbled, still in slight awe.

They walked along the fencing until they reached a set of black wire gates that read "Wiltshire Estates". The burn pile wasn't too far from the gates, smoke smoldering off of the burnt bodies of walkers as the rancid smell assaulted their noses. Maggie cringed at the smell, wrinkling her nose in disgust and hoping they'd get away from the scent soon enough, her stomach roiling.

They were met with three more guys near the gates, their looks questioning as they met the apparent leader of the five that found them out in the woods. The man provided them with a nod before they worked on opening the entrance and allowing them in.

"You'll have to excuse our little system. Can't be too careful these days," the man gestured at the gate and other men. "Right this way."

Daryl set Judith back down on the ground now that there were no other traps she could possibly step on. She stayed close to his side and grabbed for his hand while Daryl took hers and continued walking with the others.

"How many are in your group?" Daryl asked as he glanced the place over. It seemed all too eerily similar to Woodbury and it had him clenching his fist at his side.

"How many do we have now, Todd?" Their leader scratched his head. "My guess is close to 30, give or take. Accidents happen and like I said, s'been a while since we've seen new faces. Well, friendly faces anyway. And kids. Y'all won't be a problem I presume?"

"What d'ya mean 'friendly faces'?" Daryl picked up on his words. He figured it was best that he did most of the talking for the group.

"Been about a week now. Ran into a small group similar to y'all. Gave us some trouble, killed a few men and got out of here."

Daryl didn't have to turn to catch the looks he was receiving from Carl and Maggie. "These people have a name?"

"Why? They concern you?" The man stopped, making everyone else stop with him.

Daryl vaguely shook his head and shrugged. "We were attacked by a small group a while back too." It was a lie but what these people didn't know wouldn't hurt them. He wanted more information without trying to pry too much.

"Small world. Don't recall any names. Might've been Rick or something."

Maggie covered her mouth and turned her head away. She could feel the tears threatening to emerge and she couldn't let them. They couldn't let on that they knew them. Who was she kidding? It may not have been Rick and the others. It could've been someone else entirely different. But Rick wasn't exactly a name to be mistaken.

"She alright?"

"Yeah, just been through a lot," Daryl explained.

"Haven't we all. Sorry to hear that though." The man chuckled, "Suppose I should introduce myself. Name's Mark. I run this place, as you probably could have guessed." He extended a hand towards Daryl as Daryl shook it.

"Daryl," he replied. "Awfully brave of ya to run out into all the action, being the leader and all."

"I'm sure you understand though. We've been trying to keep everything secure from any scavengers that come our way. Now if you'll excuse me… Take a look around if you'd like."

Daryl watched as Mark left and entered into one of the houses. It was almost like the apocalypse never happened. There were a few women outside as well as a few other men, other than the four that were with Mark who were keeping a keen eye on them. Their stares didn't go unnoticed.

"Do you really think it's possible Rick and the others made it through here?" Maggie turned to Daryl, keeping her voice down and emotion free.

"I think it's definitely a possibility. But by the sounds of it, things didn't go so smoothly."

"So we need to get out of here. If my dad didn't stick around then there's something wrong with these people. And the sooner we leave, the closer we'll be to finding them," Carl shared his input.

The group fell silent as a middle aged woman approached them with a smile on her face. "I can't tell you how nice it is to have some new friendly faces around here! And your children! They're adorable!"

Daryl and Maggie exchanged glances, both of their faces burning before turning back to the woman. Carl cleared his throat and shuffled his feet as Daryl muttered a small "thanks".

* * *

It was starting to get late, probably a couple hours off from the sun setting, when Daryl decided to go have a word with Mark. These people had done for them as they said: food, shelter, and rest. Daryl left Carl, Maggie, and Judith back in the house they had been offered to rest up in for the night. And Daryl knew they couldn't stay—it wasn't ever a part of the plan anyway. They felt safer on their own. They were able to fend for themselves. They had gotten this far without any help.

But it was the mentioning of another small group that had Daryl's mind racing, the mentioning of Rick's name. Mark didn't seem much for talking about it but Daryl was hoping to change his mind. He needed to know more. He needed to know the truth.

Daryl walked up the few steps and onto a wooden porch still kept together after all this time as he cleared his throat and knocked on the front door. It was certainly a strange sensation and he felt like he should be asking for a damn cup of sugar or something, knocking on a "neighbor's" door. Some messed up world…

The door opened and Mark stood before him, still sporting the same clothes from earlier, the same slightly disheveled graying hair atop his head. He cracked a small smile as he stepped back to allow entry. "Ah, Daryl. Thought I might be seeing you before nightfall. Come on in. What can I do for you?"

Daryl stepped foot into the rather large two story home while Mark shut the door behind him. "Just had a few questions to ask is all. You live here by yourself?" He glanced around at the well decorated dining room, heavy drapery masking the windows and a few lit candles sitting on the table. The town had a few gas powered generators but they explained that they liked to conserve those when possible. Made sense, really.

Mark chuckled. "Heavens, no. Got a wife and two boys. Teenagers. They're all upstairs though. Probably close to your boy's age, I reckon."

"Yeah…" Daryl rubbed the back of his neck.

"Have a seat," Mark gestured towards the living room fit with a couch and recliner. He didn't make a move for the room though, just as Daryl had stayed put.

"That's alright. I was just wonderin' what else you might know about these people that attacked. There a chance they could attack again? Just wanna be sure with my wife and kids s'all." Daryl kept his face as straight as a board. Saying the words 'wife' and 'kids' all while referring to himself felt extremely odd, but if it was plausible and it could get the job done, he didn't care. He had no problem with lying to these people.

"You just wanna be safe and you're looking out for your family. I respect that," Mark nodded. His smile partially widened as he continued, "But are you truly concerned about this group attacking or are you more interested in Mr. Grimes and the direction he headed?"

Daryl searched the man's face trying to figure out just what exactly he was getting at. Unable to tell, he stuck with lying further to test his theory. "Not lookin' for revenge or nothin' like that. Mean what I say."

"Your friend was teetering on the verge of desperation. Found this place same way you did. Smoke in the air. Thought it could be the other half of his group. The man he trusted to take care of his kids, along with a pretty little young brunette.

"I wanted to believe this was all just a coincidence when we found you guys but the names all matched. It's a shame, really. We could use some more experienced people in our town. A hunter, a strong-willed woman, a tough teenage boy…" Mark picked up a picture frame from off of the mantel piece and stared at it as though he were in deep thought before setting it back down again. "Girl's real cute. Both of 'em, actually. Be a large asset in repopulating the town. Get the human race back on track after everything we've lost."

Daryl had been inching his way back closer to the door and to his exit. He had his hand resting just by his knife, thankful that he kept it on him. Luckily he had already sensed something was off about the place but he was hoping they could at least rest up for the night before taking off. Seemed like those plans came to a screeching halt.

Daryl had just wrapped his fingers around the hilt of his knife before he was faced with a high power pistol, freezing.

"I wouldn't try anything, Daryl. Thought you seemed smarter than that." Mark sneered, "You don't bring a knife to a gunfight."

Daryl released his knife just as Mark raised his hands in the air, pistol still equipped and pointing off to the side, acting like he meant no harm.

"You see, I have a family to protect." Mark lowered his arms back down slowly. He trained the pistol back on Daryl and fired a shot all at the same time Daryl threw the door open behind him and bolted, slamming the door shut once more.

He knew turning his back to a loaded gun was suicide as he heard the wood door splinter from the gunshot. But at this point, it was all he could do. He just kept moving, never looking back and taking it as good news that the bullet must have missed him because he didn't feel any pain. The eyes of the survivors who were still out and about were glued to him as he made his way back to the others, practically knocking the door down as he clambered into the house and locked the door.

Carl, Maggie, and Judith were up on their feet in an instant. "What's going on? Was that a gunshot?—Daryl?"

"We gotta go. Now." Daryl wasted no time spitting the words out as he scooped Judith up and headed for the back door. Carl grabbed the backpack and slid his arms through the straps, he and Maggie following right behind. Something was obviously wrong and they weren't about to question Daryl's judgment.

"What happened? What did you say? What did Mark say?" Maggie asked as they exited out the back of the house via glass sliding doors, stepping out onto a porch.

"He knows Rick and he knows who we are. We don't get outta here now, we'll be the ones he's gonna take his revenge out on." Daryl briefly explained, leaving out the part that Mark had made a specific comment about Maggie and Judith. He was unsure whether these people knew Maggie was pregnant or not since it wasn't all too noticeable but that was beside the point. He subconsciously hugged Judith closer to his chest, knowing that it was his dumb fault for getting them into this mess. But he wasn't about to let anything happen to them.

* * *

_Okay, so I probably should have elaborated more on what happened, etc. while they were there but I like action. So I kind of jumped around that. Hope you guys don't mind? :/_


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** I'm not entirely sure how to write it but we are back to where chapter one actually started. And I promise I had this idea planned the entire time.

* * *

After running back out into the woods and getting swarmed by a handful of armed men and walkers, all while losing Maggie and Carl along the way, Daryl and Judith were alone. It wouldn't be long until the sun set and they were still in the woods—not that Daryl necessarily minded. But once again, it'd be a different story if he was by himself. He could have climbed a tree and got some rest. There was no way he wanted to try that with Judith. He figured there would have to be some kind of house or something nearby, some place until morning.

Daryl didn't stop to take a short break until after he took a quick scan of the area. He didn't see any figures in sight, dead or alive, so he set Judith back on her feet and bent down in front of her.

"You alright?" Daryl checked her over for any sign that she could have been hurt other than some possible mental trauma. He imagined it probably wasn't too great for her to see what she did, people being killed in cold blood. But it was certainly kill or be killed in that moment and there was no other way around it.

Judith nodded as he noticed she was staring at the blood on his pants. The blood he had smeared off of his hand from bashing that guy's skull in. She frowned once she met his eyes. "You're hurted."

Daryl immediately shook his head. "I'm fine, don't you worry 'bout a thing. S'not my blood, alright?" He adjusted her jacket that hung crooked on her tiny frame and tugged the zipper back up a little. "I promised your daddy I'd keep ya safe at all cost. I ain't 'bout to let anything happen to either of us."

"We are close to finding them?" Judith stared back at him.

"Sounds like we can't be too far. They got a few days ahead of us." Daryl rubbed a hand across the stubble on his chin. "Gotta find your brother and Maggie first though. They gotta be 'round here somewhere."

And just the tiniest smile crossed Judith's lips before there was a loud _crack_ and Daryl fell back on his ass, stunned. He felt an immediate sharp pain radiating somewhere near the left side of his abdomen before he snapped out of it, grabbing Judith and pulling her behind him as he pulled the Ruger. Daryl managed to fire off two rounds back to back before he watched Mark's body hit the ground, his heart thudding in his chest.

The son of a bitch must have followed them and he didn't even know it.

Shit.

"Daryl—" Judith's voice brought Daryl back, noticing she was now standing in front of him, her small hands gripped onto his shirt.

Daryl caught a quick glimpse of the gunshot wound before he gently pushed Judith back. He made to sit up more and get back on his feet, the newly acquired wound almost stunting him from moving further. He pressed his left hand over it in an attempt to ease the pain and staunch the blood but that proved to be pretty useless once he reached around and realized he was dealing with a through and through gunshot wound.

"You're bleedin'…" Judith's frown deepened.

"Yeah, s'my blood… Better me than you, right?" Daryl tried to joke but soon realized it went right over the three year old's head as tears built up in her eyes. Sometimes he felt like a true asshole…

"What I do to help?" Judith wiped her nose on her sleeve.

Daryl managed to tuck the Ruger back and glanced down at his hands. He was already covered in his own blood, the radius of the stain on his shirt only increasing with every beat of his heart, with every minute that passed.

"You just help lead the way, okay? We gotta find some place safe to stay before nighttime. Before the walkers head this way."

Judith eagerly grabbed his right hand and started walking as Daryl cringed knowing she was going to get herself covered in blood before the day was over. But she didn't seem to care. If anything, she seemed damn determined.

Now was a hell of a time to be separated from Carl and Maggie. Not only did they have all of the supplies but they were extra hands. Daryl wasn't too sure if he'd be able to do anything to stop the bleeding and if it kept up at this rate, he was afraid he'd pass out. He needed a goddamn miracle because he wasn't about to let himself pass out and leave Judith all alone. He had to fight through it and hope that they found something.

It would have helped if he would have seen Mark lurking in the shadows before he fired.

Daryl wasn't even sure how far they had ended up walking before he collapsed, falling to his hands and knees. His vision blurred as he shut his eyes and braced himself from collapsing any further. Judith's voice was babbling on beside him and he felt her tugging on his vest.

"We almost there! Daryl!" Judith pulled at his right arm just as he managed to get back on his feet and look straight ahead. He smiled faintly once the image of the two story house came into view.

"Just a lil' further, okay?" Judith gripped a hold of his hand once again, leading him along.

"Okay," Daryl nodded. He was just thankful they hadn't run into any other men or walkers along the way.

Daryl sucked it up as they approached the front door and gently pushed Judith back. "Stay close behind me…" He kept the crossbow slung across his back as he pulled the Ruger once again. With the sad state that he was in, he wasn't sure using his knife was such a great idea. But hopefully he wouldn't need anything.

He opened the front door and stepped inside, doing a quick sweep with his eyes and coming up empty. He made sure to walk the whole first floor before heading upstairs and checking all of the bedrooms, relieved to find that he and Judith were now the only inhabitants.

Daryl turned to face Judith, her lips still turned in a frown. He reached out and ruffled her hair since the blood on his right hand was dry. "I'm okay… Both of us are okay. No more frownin'…"

"You need ta rest now." Judith snatched his hand again but Daryl pulled away, causing her to stop where she was and turn back with a pout.

"I will, I promise. Ya just gotta give me a minute. Gotta try and fix this…" Daryl still had his left hand planted firmly against the wound as he had the majority of the way there. It was no longer bleeding like it was, if any at all now. He'd just have to take that as a good sign. That and he didn't have to worry about digging a damn bullet out.

He pulled the strap of the crossbow over his head and set the weapon down in the hall before he stumbled his way to the bathroom and started searching through the cabinets. Surely Mark and his group hadn't raided the place of medical supplies or anything, having that entire subdivision to themselves. The house looked to be in fairly good shape and still together in one piece as if the previous owners just evacuated empty handed.

But sure enough, there wasn't anything he could use. A small little Band-Aid wasn't going to do shit for him. He mentally cursed the previous homeowners for not having some sort of gauze and medical tape. Ripping his jacket to use was out of the question. It was too thick and wouldn't do much good anyway except keep him warm.

"Judy..." Daryl leaned against the counter and faced the doorway. Judith popped out of one of the bedrooms and made her way to him. "…do me a favor and find either a long sleeved shirt… or a sheet or somethin'… Can't be too thick."

Judith nodded and disappeared into the closest bedroom. He could hear her sift through drawers before there was a squeak of a closet door. "I gots one!" She exclaimed from inside the room, making Daryl smirk and shake his head.

"Good, bring it here." Daryl shrugged his vest off before unbuttoning his jacket and slipping it off as well, gritting his teeth from the movement. He set both articles of clothing on the counter as Judith popped back into the doorway with her arms outstretched. He grabbed the shirt from her and thanked her but she stayed put and watched as he tore the material, rendering the shirt sleeveless. She continued to watch in fascination as he tied the sleeves together, folded the body of the shirt up, and tied it tight around his waist. If it was good enough to work the last time he had a hole through him, it was good enough now.

"Now you rest?" Judith stared up at him.

"Yeah… S'good as it gets right now." Daryl grabbed onto the doorframe to balance himself out before he followed Judith into the second bedroom. He smiled once he realized why she had chosen that room. She had the bed made up with the blanket pulled back, his crossbow propped up against the wall by the head of the bed.

"Get some rest so you feel better 'morrow." Judith grabbed his hand and pulled him over to the bed. She crawled up onto the mattress and pulled the blanket back even more.

"You're too cute for your own damn good, kid…" Daryl muttered. He sat on the edge of the bed, grimacing as he kicked his boots off, placed the Ruger by his crossbow, and lay down. And without another word, Judith threw the blanket over him and crawled up and kissed him on the forehead before jumping back down.

* * *

Judith climbed back down the stairs and walked around the house while there was still a little bit of light shining in from outside. She entered the kitchen and started pilfering through the cabinets and various drawers to see what she could find. She found some more canned goods and a box of Teddy Grahams before she stopped digging and sat down on the floor with the box. Intrigued by the picture of a friendly looking bear, she ripped the box open and stuck her hand into the bag. Once she realized the food was a mini bear shaped cookie she giggled and bit the head of the first one off.

Judith got back onto her feet and pulled her jacket up to try and carry the three cans of food and box of cookies. She managed to juggle the armful and climbed back up the stairs before dropping the load in the bedroom where she had left Daryl. Unable to contain her excitement over what she had found, she walked over to the edge of the bed and shook Daryl's arm.

"Daryl, I finded cookies!" Judith whispered. She slightly frowned when he didn't acknowledge her but she figured he was sleeping so she wouldn't bother him.

She walked down the hall and into the bathroom where Daryl had tried to fix himself up. She grabbed his vest and jacket from off the counter, turning to return to the bedroom and froze. There was a bloody handprint on the doorframe from where Daryl had steadied himself. And when Judith dropped the clothing articles on the floor in the bedroom, she noticed she had gotten blood on her hands and jacket from touching them. She wiped her hands along the carpet and ignored the little bit that had gotten on her clothing.

Judith closed the bedroom door and locked it before she climbed up onto the bed and snuggled in next to Daryl under the blanket, the food having been disregarded for the time being. He wasn't going to eat and she wasn't really all that hungry, nor could she open the cans, so she figured she'd go to sleep too. It wouldn't be any fun playing by herself anyway.

* * *

When Judith woke the next morning, she wasn't used to everything being so quiet. Nobody was talking and it took her a minute to remember that it was only her and Daryl. She immediately sat up with her legs pulled underneath of her as she looked to Daryl. She tried shaking his arm again but didn't get anything in response.

"Sleepyhead…" Judith mumbled as she crawled off of the bed and made sure to pull the blanket back up to keep him covered. He felt kind of cold and now that Judith had gotten out from under the covers, she realized it was pretty chilly in the room. She learned that the temperature dropped when the sun went down and she was hoping the sun would make everything warm again soon.

She sat down on the floor and ate a couple handfuls of the teddy shaped cookies after playing around with them. She stayed quiet and minded her own business while she waited for Daryl to wake up. But the more time that passed, the more Judith began to realize that maybe he was in a really deep sleep. Maybe his injury really took it out of him and he needed all the sleep he could get before he got better.

He needed her brother and Maggie. They could help him. She needed to find them so they could help Daryl and then they could find her daddy and the others.

Judith walked over to Daryl's weapons, stopping to steal a glance at him before she stooped down and picked up the gun. If she was going to try and find Maggie and her brother, she'd need something to fight off walkers. She knew it had to be the head and she knew that if she wanted to use the gun she had to pull the trigger. It seemed simple enough.

She slid the gun into the pocket of her jacket, half of it still hanging out, as she tried to shake Daryl awake one more time. "I's gonna go find 'em, okay? They knows what ta do." She grabbed the box of Teddy Grahams and set them on the bed next to him for whenever he'd wake up. And knowing she did all she could do, she shut the bedroom door behind her and left the house in hopes of finding the others.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** I ended up rewriting half of this chapter, give or take. That's why I didn't update sooner.

* * *

"How's your arm?" Maggie glanced over at Carl as they walked side by side through the woods. They were attempting to backtrack so they could stumble across where the firefight went down in hopes of finding some clue as to where Daryl and Judith could have disappeared to. Neither really got a whole lot of sleep as they spent most of the night worried that more men from that subdivision would have found them. Or walkers.

"It's fine. Just a graze." Carl shrugged his injury off. A bullet had clipped his right arm but it wasn't anything unbearable. He felt that Maggie was just over exaggerating, panic stricken when it had occurred. The force of the gunfire had him tripping backward initially as he almost lost the grip on his own gun but he regained his footing right after. They truly hadn't had a problem since—and that was before sundown.

Maggie frowned. "Do you even think we're headed in the right direction? What if Daryl and Judith are trying to find us and we end up going in circles around each other?"

"It's a possibility but I guess it's something we're gonna have to risk. We can't move on without them and we can't just sit still and hope they find us. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack out here." Carl tried to search the ground for any footprints; signs of life. Daryl used to take him out hunting when he went and he tried to show him how to track as well as use the crossbow. But that was so long ago now. Back when they were all living together in the safety of their home.

"Have you given any thought about that Mark guy and what Daryl meant when he said those people knew Rick?" Maggie questioned. She lowered her gaze down to the ground while they walked. Carl could tell she was nervous because she just kept asking questions. She was worried about Daryl and Judith. And ever since Rick's name had been mentioned, neither of them could stop thinking about the others. They had to be close.

"I try not to think about it," Carl admitted. "We have to find Daryl and Judith first. Then we can worry about the others."

Maggie fell silent after that and Carl didn't have much of anything else to say. They just kept pushing on and walking through the woods until they found what looked to be an old path worn down into the earth. Neither said a word as they decided to follow it and see where it led, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. It didn't look like it had been traveled recently so Carl wasn't about to get his hopes up.

After a few minutes, they lost the path to overgrown shrubbery and weeds, completely covering the small dirt trail and erasing it from existence. Maggie let out a weary sigh.

Carl took that moment to scout the area and spotted what looked to be a clearing off in the near distance. He pointed to it and Maggie nodded as they began their trek towards it. Once they grew nearer, they could hear something—something that sounded like a muted voice mumbling incoherent words. Carl and Maggie both stooped down and took cover behind the greenery and trees, Carl pulling the Browning and Maggie her machete.

But when Judith appeared in their vision, they exchanged glances and couldn't help but smile, holding back a laugh.

"Judith!" Carl ran out ahead first, ducking under a few low branches. He could hear Maggie running behind him.

The little girl jumped, startled, as she stopped walking. One hand reached into the pocket of her jacket. And that's when Carl realized she was carrying Daryl's gun. And she had blood on her.

And Daryl was nowhere in sight.

"I found you!" Judith exclaimed, smiling. She ran to her brother and hugged him. "I telled Daryl I'd find you."

"Judith, where is Daryl?" Maggie scanned over the area but came up short. There was nothing in view except for trees.

"He's hurted and he needs help." Judith frowned.

Maggie and Carl exchanged glances again. "Hurt how? Was he bit?"

Judith shook her head. "He got shot."

"But where is he now? And why do you have his gun?" Carl shook his head. "Why did you leave him?" It wasn't meant as a mean question but wouldn't she be safer if she would have stayed with Daryl? But if Daryl had any say, he would have never let Judith leave. Not unless he really was hurt and he didn't think he was going to live…

"Jus' come on! You's wastin' time!" Judith grabbed Carl's hand and dragged him along in the direction she had come from, Maggie following. They could both only hope they knew where she was going, that she hadn't lost track of where she had come from. Carl tried not to think about it too much. Daryl had to be okay. _He had to._

As soon as a two story home came into view, Judith briefly explained that that was where Daryl was. Carl didn't hesitate to pick Judith up and run faster while Maggie kept up right beside him. Judith couldn't run anywhere near as fast as they could and there was no hiding their panic now.

"Upstairs room. I shutted the door so he could sleep." Judith pointed at the room once Carl set her down and she started to ascend the staircase.

Maggie was already close to tears and when Carl pulled his pistol out again, she had to bite her lip. Daryl was hurt, he had been shot, and he must have been unconscious for quite some time if Judith was able to leave and get as far as she did. But Carl was thinking it was a possibility that Daryl didn't make it.

Carl glanced back at Maggie and nodded his head toward his sister. Maggie got down on her knees and pulled Judith back against her chest so she was looking away from the door. As soon as Judith was turned away, Carl slowly opened the door with his gun ready. He didn't hear anything so he kept slowing nudging the door open with his foot.

Only he didn't see Daryl.

Carl looked back over at Maggie and Judith before returning his attention to the room. He took one step inside in order to glance around the door. His shoulders fell with a sigh of relief, the tension washing away as he lowered his gun. Daryl was propped up against the wall on the other side of the door where Carl couldn't see him when he first entered.

"Daryl?" Carl set his gun on the floor as he got down next to him. He could see that he was breathing and his face was contorted in pain, giving Carl the impression that he was conscious even though he had his eyes shut tight.

Daryl's eyes flickered open for a brief moment before falling shut again. "Couldn't…couldn't get any further…Judith…"

"We found her. She's okay," Carl reassured him. "We wouldn't have found you without her."

Maggie and Judith entered into the room after having heard Carl's reply. Judith immediately went to Daryl's other side and hugged onto his arm causing him to look at her. She smiled and the slightest smirk crossed Daryl's lips.

"C'mon, let's get you back up on the bed." Maggie stooped down next to Judith to take Daryl's right arm while Carl got him by his left. They worked together to pull Daryl back on his feet and helped support him until they reached the edge of the bed. Maggie frowned once she noticed the color that Daryl had seemed to drain from his face after moving. He'd lost a lot of blood; too much for Maggie's liking. "What happened?"

"Mark must've followed us…didn't realize it…" Daryl tried to explain. "He's dead now…"

"Well, I'm glad he didn't have better aim," Carl muttered.

"You an' me both." Daryl cringed, supporting his weight with his left hand while covering the wound with his right.

"Just hang on, okay?" Maggie fought back any tears that threatened to escape. Now wasn't the time for crying when she had to get her vision clear and help Daryl. She felt like the responsibility fell on her since Carl wouldn't know a whole lot and Judith obviously couldn't do anything.

Carl slid the backpack off his shoulders and moved it closer to Maggie. He pulled his knife out and cut the material away that Daryl had used to secure his wound and tossed it on the floor. "Think you can get your shirt off?"

Daryl vaguely nodded and started to work on unbuttoning his shirt while Carl placed a hand on his shoulder to keep him steady. Carl glanced over to Maggie with a slight frown at how unstable Daryl seemed to be. It wasn't looking good.

Maggie on the other hand ignored the look Carl was giving her. They couldn't give up on Daryl. He was still alive and breathing and that was all that mattered. He'd pull through just like he had many other times. She took Daryl's shirt from him once he was able to get it off and tossed it into the pile with his jacket and vest. "This might work best if you lie down on your right side."

Daryl managed to scoot back further on the bed and do as Maggie suggested. He was in no place to argue with anyone. He didn't even have it in him to scold Judith for taking off like that and giving him a damn heart attack.

"How're you doin'?" Maggie placed a hand on his bicep, trying to ignore the scar marks that littered his body. He was still pretty pale and cool to the touch.

"Been better…" Daryl mumbled.

Maggie got down on her knees and started sifting through what they had in the backpack. She pulled out the gauze, medical tape, and a small travel sewing kit they had found earlier on, figuring that if stitches were ever required, that was about as close as they were going to get.

Maggie started working on cleaning the exit wound the best she could with what she had before she realized it probably needed stitches. She bit her lip to try and hold back a frown. There really wasn't any way she could sterilize anything with what they had and she feared infection. She'd have to look to see what kind of prescriptions and medications she had picked up at that pharmacy as well, see if any of them rang any bells.

"I'm gonna have to try and stitch this, alright?" Maggie warned Daryl as she grabbed the little sewing kit and unzipped the bag. She grabbed the first appropriate sized needle she could and threaded it after testing the strength of it. She couldn't break the thread with her fingers so she figured it would work.

Daryl flinched the first few pokes of the needle while Maggie tried her best, wishing they had some kind of pain relief for him. But by the time Maggie had finished working on the exit wound and got it patched up with some gauze, Daryl had passed out. She quickly grabbed his wrist and found his pulse, which turned out to be fairly fast.

"He gonna be okay?" Judith asked.

"He's gonna be fine." Maggie forced a smile. She grabbed what she needed to work on the entry wound and slightly froze after she was able to clean most of the blood away. The scar from where the Governor had stabbed him caught her eye as it wasn't far from where his newly acquired wound was. It was strange how vivid her memory was of that day. Like it had happened yesterday.

Maggie finished fixing up the entry wound the best she could before grabbing the blanket and throwing it over Daryl, pulling it up to his shoulders. She threw everything back into the backpack and zipped it up. Her hands were stained red and now that she had done everything she could, she felt sick.

"…What do we do about Mark's group?" Carl quietly asked.

"What about them?" Maggie directed her attention to Carl.

"They were out to kill and they can't be too far away."

"We already killed a good portion of them, didn't we? And Daryl said he killed Mark."

"And with Mark dead, don't you think that's going to send up a warning flag for everyone?"

"If they come this way, we'll handle it. Until then we can't worry about it. Daryl's our priority right now." Maggie crossed her arms. "We're not leaving him."

"I'm not saying we should," Carl clarified. "What I'm saying is that we may not be safe here."

"And what I'm saying is that if something happens, we'll deal with it then." Maggie left the room after that and headed downstairs. She couldn't think about it. The fact that they _could_ be attacked again with their defenses completely lowered. They were powerless. And even the thought of them having to leave Daryl behind made her heart ache.

Maggie placed a hand over her belly as she felt the baby move. She had been feeling it a lot lately with all the stress but she never let on that she could. The baby already hated anytime an argument arose and she couldn't help but think that she should be smiling at that. Smiling that the baby must be healthy if it's moving. Smiling because she had a new life growing inside of her. But all she could do was cry.

She wanted Glenn. She wanted her father to still be alive. She wanted Beth. And now worst of all, she wanted Daryl to be okay.

There was a creak in the staircase that caused Maggie to turn and look back. She found Carl standing there on the bottom step as she wiped her eyes.

"I'm sorry if I made you upset. I just wanted to list the possibilities so that we know what to try and be prepared for if worse comes to worst," Carl explained. "Daryl's tough."

Maggie nodded. "He'll be okay. He has to be. If the bullet would have hit a major artery or organ or anything else, he would be dead right now."

"We'll all be okay. We'll get through this. Everything." Carl smiled weakly back at her. "I may not always be the most optimistic person but I mean it. Things will be okay."


	15. Chapter 15

After being reunited, everyone stuck together and stayed within each other's sight. Maggie and Carl returned to the room in which they left Daryl and Judith. Judith was eating some of the Teddy Grahams while sitting on the bed next to Daryl, who was now lying on his back awake.

"Hey, glad to see you're awake," Carl commented with a smirk.

"We need to talk." Daryl braced an arm beside him, pulling himself forward to sit up. Maggie and Carl both rushed to his side and forced him back down before he could even fully sit. Daryl forced a laugh, gripping his side and shutting his eyes. "This is exactly why…"

"What're you talking about?" Maggie crossed her arms. "You shouldn't be moving around. It'll only reopen your wounds."

"I'm talkin' about what we're even doin' here in the first place." Daryl cringed. "We just got confirmation that Rick's still alive…he ain't far and the others gotta be with him."

"You're in no shape to travel right now," Carl retorted. It took a minute for Daryl's words to click. "…No way."

"I'm only holdin' ya back. Not doin' so great as it is." Daryl scoffed, "Can't even sit, for Christ's sake…"

"We are not leaving you for a shot at finding Rick. You're not dying," Maggie argued. "We stick together. That's the promise."

Judith set the Teddy Grahams down at the mentioning of leaving Daryl. She crawled up to look Daryl in the face, waving her finger at him. "We's not leavin' you and you's not leavin' us. Got it?"

Daryl grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "I'm gettin' scolded by a three year old…" He smirked.

Judith giggled and hugged him without even thinking, her arm bumping his wound by accident. Daryl inhaled sharply at the contact and instinctually grabbed what had set off the pain. He gripped Judith by her arms and slightly pushed her off before Carl grabbed her and set her back on her feet.

"What'd I do?" Judith looked from Daryl to Carl with a frown. "I hurted him?"

"You just have to be more careful," Carl explained.

"It's okay, Judith. Just…wasn't expecting that." Daryl forced a smile in her direction to reassure her that everything was fine.

Maggie figured the topic had been changed and things were settled. Nobody was going anywhere and the only way Daryl could get what he apparently wanted was if _he_ left them—which wasn't happening. So she grabbed a couple cans of food, passing one off to Carl, and prepared to call it a night. They would all eat at least a little something, get a little to drink, and get some sleep. The sun would set before long anyhow.

After splitting some food, Carl and Maggie decided to check around the house for anything else they could use. Judith accompanied them so that Daryl could rest without her jumping all over him. They found a bit more food and bottled drinks, the two things they were most thankful to stumble upon. There seemed to be plenty of blankets and pillows since all of the beds were still partially made up. And spare clothes. It was hard to find clothes that really fit Judith but they'd make do. With the cold months ahead of them, they had no room for complaints.

"Should probably change your bandage. It wouldn't hurt to," Maggie suggested as she glanced over at Carl. He was pilfering through a dresser with Judith while she had been searching through the closet.

Carl shrugged. "I guess. Do we have enough stuff to do it though? Because Daryl's—"

Maggie put her hand up to silence him. "We have enough. And we might find more around the house. You never know…"

She led Carl and Judith back into the room with Daryl to where the backpack resided on the floor. Judith stayed quiet as the three noticed Daryl had fallen asleep. Maggie knew it had to be driving Daryl crazy not being able to get up and do anything. He was restless the last time he had been injured. Hell, anytime he had been injured he was restless.

Maggie peeled the tape and gauze off of Carl's arm, cleaning it the best she could before wrapping it back up again. It seemed to be looking good so far—not a whole lot of redness or inflammation. The wound was mostly superficial as the bullet clipped his arm more than anything. They were lucky it wasn't anything worse or that Carl hadn't moved his arm an inch more.

"You think we'll be okay to all get some sleep? I can stay up and keep watch otherwise." Carl was already back on his feet and leaning in the doorway.

"I think we'll be fine. There weren't a whole lot of walkers around and we're upstairs. We'll just keep everything closed up." Maggie zipped the backpack and got back on her feet as well. She looked over at Daryl and noticed he was slightly shivering. "I'm gonna stay with Daryl for a while. You two go ahead and get some sleep."

"Okay. Come on, Judith." Carl grabbed his sister's hand and left the room, shutting the door behind them. Maggie could hear the door from the next room over shut telling her that they had picked their room.

Maggie walked over to Daryl's side and gently placed a hand on his forehead. He still felt cool to the touch and seemed a bit pale, something she assumed would probably be a while before it would change. His body would have to replenish the blood he lost and in the meantime, he wasn't going to be quite himself: weak, cold, and lethargic.

Maggie lay down next to Daryl and burrowed under the blanket beside him without a thought, curled up against his uninjured side. She figured she would just stay a while to help get him a little warmed up. They never did get his shirt back on him as Maggie remembered once she trailed her hand across his bare chest. She rested her hand on the center of his chest and closed her eyes. Being able to feel his heart beat was reassuring to her. The steady rhythm let her know that he was right there beside her, alive. And that was all she needed.

* * *

Maggie awoke to the sensation of someone grabbing her hand. Her eyes flickered open in a haze before she jolted awake, realizing that she had fallen asleep with Daryl. She quickly sat up and pulled her hand back—only Daryl didn't let her.

"I'm sorry…" Maggie mumbled.

"No need to apologize." Daryl squeezed her hand before letting go. "You miss Glenn…I understand."

Maggie slowly took her hand back and vaguely nodded. She did miss Glenn but she wasn't so sure that was the reason she stayed with Daryl through the night. She really wasn't sure why she did.

There was a sudden shift as Maggie felt the baby kicking around in her belly. That was usually her wake up call, and would have been if Daryl hadn't woke her up first. She grabbed Daryl's hand back and placed it against her stomach in one swift motion with a smile.

"I've been feeling the baby move around for quite some time now. Usually in the mornings and when we all get to talking…" Maggie couldn't help but notice the flush in Daryl's face as she kept his hand pressed against her wriggling belly. It was something he probably never really experienced. It was something Maggie never experienced. And it was finally starting to get to her that she needed to share this with someone.

"…You've been feelin' okay and everything?" Daryl questioned, his eyes locked on their overlapping hands.

"As best as I can I guess. Can't back out now."

"Still worried?"

"How can I not be?" Maggie released Daryl's hand.

Daryl only nodded in understanding. There wasn't much he could really say. He had already reassured her that she would be okay. But that didn't mean anything. It was only words. She tried to push all of those thoughts from her head on a daily basis. She wanted to believe everything would be okay and that she would have the chance to hold her baby in her arms.

Maggie let a bit of silence stretch on as she stared down at the space between them. "I should probably check your bandages. How are you feeling?" She was already maneuvering to get off the bed and grab the backpack.

"No worse for wear." Daryl partially shivered. Maggie noticed and it only made her want to curl back up with him under the blanket. It was a bit brisk in the room since the sun set and they lost the warmth of the previous day.

Maggie pulled the backpack over as Daryl moved the blanket out of the way. She furrowed her brow once she saw that the gauze covering the entrance wound was bloody. "You're still bleeding?"

Daryl shook his head. "I think it's just from Judith bumpin' it."

Maggie hoped that was all it was. She peeled the bandaging off and once again tried to clean it the best she could before patching it back up. Daryl rolled onto his side before Maggie could say anything, allowing her to access the exit wound. She cleaned and replaced fresh bandages on it as well, thankful that her stitching still looked okay.

"We'll have to keep an eye on them to make sure it doesn't get infected. It looks okay so far though. Maybe a little irritated…"

Daryl rolled back to look up at Maggie, pulling the blanket back up. "And what happens if it gets infected, doc? We got any antibiotics?" He was trying to joke but Maggie didn't find it humorous.

"I still have to look to see what we got…" Maggie paused as she stared at the blanket. She turned her attention to Daryl and found him already looking back at her. "I really care about you, Daryl. And I'm worried…I'm worried about you and what this all means. I don't want anything to happen."

"Maggie…"

"We're not leaving you. We're not splitting up. We're not leaving you here to die," Maggie continued. "And if that means we'll never see Rick again, or anyone else that might still be with him, then fine. But we're not leaving you." She was sitting on the floor next to the bed. It took her a moment to even realize she had started crying and Daryl was now sitting up with his legs draped over the edge of the bed.

"Maggie, I—"

"I told Carl we'd be the ones to end up getting you killed. That if you were out there by yourself you'd be better off. But I don't want that…" Maggie confessed. "I could tell you didn't want to trust Mark but you did for us. You were trying to do what was best for us because they had what we didn't—a safe place to stay, food…You wouldn't have got shot if we didn't go there."

"You don't know that. And if we hadn't of gone there we wouldn't know anything about Rick havin' come through here. Maggie…" Daryl eased himself down onto the floor beside her, gripping her by her arms. "We're all fine. None of this is your fault and I'd never leave ya guys. I just want ya to find Rick and Glenn and Beth…"

Maggie carefully wrapped her arms around him, avoiding bumping either of his wounds. "I'm sorry. I'm a mess. They may not even be alive and I…I can't take anymore losses."

Daryl cautiously hugged her in return, his side burning from what little movement he had made to comfort her. He ignored it though as Maggie cried into his shoulder. He kept one hand planted firmly on her back while the other was half tangled in her hair supporting the back of her neck.

"I'm sorry," Maggie whispered.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** This story is just randomly going in whatever direction my mind wanders when I sit down to type it out, aka I have no clue where I'm really going with all this. Sorry if it's a jumbled mess.

* * *

"Is they still sleepin'?" Judith kept her voice down as she stared up at her brother.

"They just need a little time to themselves right now." Carl had headed downstairs with Judith to scout the house again and make sure there wasn't anything they had overlooked that could prove to be useful. He picked up on a slight conversation that the two were having as he passed the room but the door kept him from truly knowing what was going on. He knew Maggie was upset and that she was crying but it was only obvious that she needed a break. She needed someone to talk to that wasn't a teenager or infant, and Carl couldn't blame her.

Once they entered into the kitchen, Judith started pilfering through the various cabinet doors. Carl smiled to himself. She was easily entertained. He turned his attention to the pantry in hopes of finding some more salvageable food. He had just begun a small pile before Judith called out to him.

"Look! I fitted in here!" Judith exclaimed. Carl turned to see what she was talking about and laughed upon realizing she had crawled under the kitchen sink.

"It's a good hiding spot if we ever play hide and go seek," Carl mused.

"Can we play?" Judith eagerly crawled out from her spot and waited for her brother's response.

Carl sighed and turned back to face Judith again. "Not right now but maybe late—" He stopped, something catching the corner of his eye. Movement from outside.

Judith pouted and crossed her arms. "But what am I s'pose to do?"

Carl raised his finger in front of his lips to signal to his sister to keep quiet. He watched the shadow from one of the back windows keep creeping along until he heard voices that accompanied it.

"Why would Mark be hiding out here?"

"He never came back. He's gotta be somewhere."

"Or dead…"

"Man, shut up! Just check the house over. If Mark's not here then we might find our fleeing company from the other day. Spread out."

Carl quietly made his way over to Judith while still keeping his finger perched on his lips in silence mode. This was exactly what he feared: men from that subdivision looking for their leader who never returned. And now they'd found them to finish where they left off.

Carl grabbed Judith's hand just as he saw a shadow cover the outside door that led into the kitchen. He stared at the doorknob and placed his free hand over his gun. The doorknob slightly rattled but it didn't open.

"Locked. Go 'round front."

Carl pulled Judith closer to him and whispered, "We gotta make it back upstairs. You stay close to me and don't make a sound, got it?"

Judith nodded her head, her lips sealed. Carl disregarded the food he had piled up and stayed low as he moved for the stairs. He had to warn Maggie and Daryl and they had to get out of there. He wasn't sure how many men were stalking the place and he wasn't sure what kind of firepower they had, but he wasn't about to find out with Judith by his side.

"They're inside!"

Carl just barely caught a glimpse of one of the men looking in through a different window before it was busted out. He quickly swooped Judith up in his arms and started running for the stairs right as he felt a burst of hot air explode from behind him, flames licking at his heels as Judith screamed. Apparently they weren't kidding around if they came loaded with Molotov cocktails.

Carl was just able to make it to the stairs and started climbing them when he was met with Daryl and Maggie staring down at him from the top, Maggie panic-stricken and Daryl ready to fight. Carl set Judith on her feet once he was beside them.

"What was that?" Maggie pulled a terrified Judith over to her.

"We have company," Carl retorted. "I don't know how many there are but I'm guessing they're pretty fully loaded with weapons." He glanced down at the foot of the stairs. "House is on fire and I don't know if they have another Molotov or not."

"Shit…" Daryl cursed, rubbing his chin. "Grab our stuff first and we're gettin' the hell outta here."

The four entered back into the room momentarily to grab what they could. Carl grabbed the backpack while Daryl threw his jacket on over his shirt. He grabbed his pistol and crossbow as Carl noticed him cringe with the effort of just bending over to grab them.

Maggie opened the window in the bedroom and slowly stuck her hand outside. When she wasn't met with gunfire, she carefully ducked her head out to see what they were dealing with. "It's clear back here. They must be watching the front."

"We can't exactly jump out of a second story window." Carl looked over the room and thought about checking the front bedroom until Daryl spoke up.

"Then we're playin' Rapunzel…" Daryl pulled the blanket off the bed and quickly added, "…Without the hair."

"Are you crazy?" Maggie stared at him.

"You see any other option? We run downstairs, we're dead. We move to the front of the house, we're dead. They ain't smart enough to cover the whole house then that's their own damn problem," Daryl explained. "We do this and we do this fast. We'll lower you down and you make a run for the trees. Find cover. Since we don't know how many we're dealing with distance is your best option."

"And what about you guys?"

Carl worked up the rest of the plan. "I'll check the front of the house afterward and distract them. Hopefully I can pick a couple of them off. Then Daryl can make a run for it down the stairs with Judith."

"You sure 'bout that?" Daryl questioned.

"Positive. They don't necessarily know you guys are here. They saw me and Judith. You guys get out of here and I'll be right behind. The windows in front lead out onto a bit of roof. I can jump down once it's clear." Carl knew Daryl didn't like his plan but he also knew they had no other choice. Besides, it wasn't like Daryl could jump around too much with his injury.

"Fine," Daryl rubbed the back of his neck. "Help me get Maggie down in one piece." He threw the blanket out the window while keeping a hold of one end of it. Carl grabbed some to help hold it as well.

"Just climb your way down like it's a rope. There'll probably still be a bit of a drop off but nowhere near as bad if ya didn't have this," Daryl explained.

Maggie looked like she wanted to argue just as much as Daryl did about Carl's plan but they all kept quiet. She carefully poked her head out the window one last time before straddling it, half in and half out. She grabbed the blanket and looked back at the two men.

"We got you. Just go," Carl assured her.

Maggie exhaled a shaky breath and nodded. Her grip tightened on the blanket as she kicked her way completely outside, her feet slamming against the side of the house as she slid down little by little. Carl managed to glance outside and watch her progress as she neared the bottom of the blanket and let go. She hit the ground, almost falling over but quickly regaining her balance.

Carl and Daryl threw the blanket out to her. "Take it, we might need it. And find cover!"

The two men exchanged glances and nodded. Carl pulled his gun and headed for the front of the house through another bedroom while Daryl made sure his crossbow was secure and pulled his gun as well. He carefully bent down and scooped Judith up just as a couple shots rang out—from the back of the house.

Daryl quickly made his way back over to the window, "Maggie—" He instantly spotted her, pistol in hand and still standing. One of the guys did make their way around after all.

"I'm fine! Go!" Maggie shouted up at him.

Daryl could hear shots ring out from the front of the house then and he cursed under his breath. He felt like he was doing nothing and that they'd be lucky if they all made it out of there alive at this point. He headed toward the stairs and bit the inside of his mouth. Now was the tricky part of escaping the fire and possible gunfire if they spotted him running.

"Keep your head to my chest and try not to breathe in the smoke," he warned Judith while hugging her tighter to him and placing one hand just behind her head. He felt her nod as she did what he said.

Daryl made his way down the stairs at a reasonable pace so not to exhaust himself just yet. He kept an eye on the raging fire off to the right as he scanned over the windows. He made his way toward the non-burning side of the house with ease, the only things bothering him were the lack of gunshots overhead from Carl, the heat of the fire, and the smoke. Daryl resisted the urge to use his gun at that moment. He hadn't been spotted and he couldn't risk anything foolish with Judith in his arms. So he made his way toward the back of the house and got the window open where he was met by Maggie.

"Thought I told you to take cover," Daryl passed Judith through the window to her.

"I kept an eye out. I wasn't about to leave you three to fend them off." Maggie got Judith on her feet and she helped Daryl climb his way through. "How are you holding up?"

"Fine," Daryl grumbled. It wasn't necessarily the truth because he knew he'd be screwed as soon as he'd allow himself the time to stop and let everything catch up to him. He started moving toward the side of the house before Maggie could question him anymore. They had to get Carl out of there now.

Maggie followed Daryl with Judith behind her. She obviously didn't believe him nor trust him to go alone. They were able to see what they were dealing with the closer they came to the front side of the house. There were only two guys left, in which Daryl and Maggie each took one out with a gunshot.

"Carl?" Maggie called up to him. He wasn't in the window. There was a crunch from inside the house as it started to buckle from the fire eating away at the entire main floor now, destroying what support there may have been left.

Carl popped back up in the window shortly after and began to clamber out onto the little bit of roof that covered the front door. He scooted to the edge before hopping down, catching himself on his hands and knees after hitting the ground on foot. "I wasn't hit. We're good."

"Grab their guns and let's get outta here then. 'Fore the fire gets out of control and we're surrounded by walkers," Daryl suggested. He spotted what looked like a bolt action rifle strapped across one of the men's backs and grinned. Maybe these guys attacking wasn't a total loss.

Carl and Judith collected the pistols the men were carrying while Daryl got the rifle and handed it over to Maggie. She tossed the strap over her head and allowed the gun to hang from her back as she grabbed Daryl by his arm and braced him. He was a little lightheaded.

"We gotta get out of here. Are you okay to walk?" Maggie kept an arm looped around Daryl's. Daryl only nodded.

Carl led the way from the house while holding Judith's hand, Maggie and Daryl trailing behind him. They were met with a few walkers as they started to trek back through the woods and into a new direction they hadn't been previously. They each took care of a couple walkers as they approached and kept Judith between the three of them. It didn't take long for them to end up partially surrounded by a small herd of walkers though—too much for them to take on.

They were left with only one option, and that was to run. The house wasn't out of sight yet as it continued to burn behind them, the smoke permeating the air. They could only hope that the walkers were far too distracted by the fire to notice them running by.

Nobody said a word as they continued to make their way through the trees. They eventually reached a spot where walkers were no longer a threat. Maggie had an arm hooked with Daryl's to make sure she didn't lose him but when they both crashed to the ground, she wasn't sure if it was due to her or Daryl.

Carl collapsed to the ground a little further ahead of them with Judith by his side. They were all panting to catch their breath and choking on the smoke, their eyes slightly irritated. Daryl gripped his side in pain and Maggie hugged her arms around her belly.

"Is everyone okay?" Carl finally spoke up once he felt he had caught his breath. He rubbed his eyes and shook his head while Judith sniffled and collapsed on him.

Maggie wiped a hand across her forehead and came back with walker blood. She grimaced and wiped her hand along in the grass. "I'm fine."

"Daryl?" Carl tried to look him over.

Daryl didn't have to move his hand to know that he was bleeding pretty heavy again. He could feel that his blood had soaked through, his jacket hung open and partially hid his hand from view. There was no point in telling them though—he didn't want them to worry. They had to keep moving until they could find another place to hole up and Daryl wasn't sure how much longer he had until he'd pass out again. "We gotta keep movin'. _Now_."

Carl nodded and got back on his feet. Judith began to cry as she rubbed at her eyes, complaining that they were burning. He picked her up with what strength he had left to carry her. Maggie was next to get back on her feet followed by Daryl. She tried to help him by grabbing him by his left arm and heaving him up.

They turned to look back toward where the house was burning. They weren't able to really grab anything from there amidst all the chaos and here they were, back out in the woods without any shelter from the impending cold temperatures and only their backpack of items they had before, along with a measly blanket.

"So much for all that…" Carl mumbled.


	17. Chapter 17

A couple days had passed since they had barely managed to escape the unforeseen attack. They had come across an abandoned neighborhood that still remained intact, Daryl barely conscious by the time they had stumbled upon it. And now Maggie was sitting on another bed in an upstairs bedroom of a two story home with Daryl and Judith while Carl was out on a supply run.

Daryl suddenly startled from his sleep. He was lying on the bed on his right side with his head resting on a pillow in Maggie's lap. "Carl back yet?"

"Not yet. Don't worry about him though. You just get some rest." Maggie ran her fingers through Daryl's hair before brushing across his forehead and frowning. What she had feared ended up coming true. Since they didn't have the supplies to take care of Daryl's injury he had succumbed to an infection. And even though it was probably well into November by now with a chill in the air, he was burning up.

Carl had already been through all the houses in the vicinity and before he left that morning, he decided to travel further. Daryl was in need of antibiotics and none of the homes had anything remotely close. So naturally, Carl wanted to keep going. And no matter how much Maggie, Daryl, and Judith hated him having to leave, it didn't stop him.

"…shouldn't of let him go," Daryl mumbled.

"We're not having this discussion, Daryl. We're not leaving you." Maggie tucked some of Daryl's hair behind his ear. She wasn't sure if she was messing with his hair out of nervousness or because it helped soothe her. Probably a little bit of both. "He said he might be gone for more than a day. He knows how to defend himself."

"M'not gettin' any better."

"Stop…" Maggie leaned back against the wall and sighed. "I'm just gonna blame your fever for your crazy talk."

Daryl snorted and rested a hand on Maggie's knee. "Crazy's normal."

Judith left the window and crawled back up onto the bed. Maggie reminded her to be careful before Judith made her way up to the head of the bed with Maggie and leaned against her, snuggling in under the blanket she had draped over her shoulders. "It's cold."

"I know. Just curl up with us and you'll get warm." Maggie hugged Judith closer and kissed her on top of her head. "See anything outside?"

Judith shook her head. "Nothin'. Just a couple walkers."

"Couple walkers we can handle." Maggie smiled.

"Is we gonna take care of 'em?"

"No, I think we're okay. It's better if they're clueless we're here."

Judith leaned against Maggie and sighed. "He's not back yet. Why's he not back yet?"

"We have to give him some time. He just left this morning. He's trying to go out a little further to see what he can find. I'm sure he'll be back tomorrow at the latest." It wasn't the first time Maggie tried to explain to Judith, and the more she thought about it, the more it upset her. She knew it was bothering Judith just as much as her and Daryl—they just kept quiet about it.

With Daryl in and out of a consciousness, Judith's questions, and Carl out by himself, Maggie was completely beside herself. Not to mention she felt like she'd been neglecting the fact that she's pregnant and quite a ways along. She hadn't given herself the time to really think about it but she was going to need diapers, clothes—baby necessities. They hadn't come across much of anything and assuming the baby was going to live, they needed to start planning…

* * *

Carl wasn't sure how far he had truly walked but he'd guess it had been at least a few miles. He carried a single pistol with four rounds and the machete, along with the backpack that he had dumped the contents of before leaving. He wasn't willing to turn around and head back empty handed. They needed supplies and it was up to him to find some.

Of course there were a few houses along the way but none proved to have anything of value that they didn't already have. Then there were a few sporadic walkers here and there. Carl felt like giving up before he ended up getting himself lost but he knew he couldn't. He didn't want to. It was when he came up on a small town that he felt a wave of relief wash over him. It had been forever since any of them had come across buildings other than homes.

Luckily, Carl didn't just go running in. By the way he had entered into the town, he had come up a small alleyway. There were the usual walkers milling about through the streets but one vehicle stood out among the abandoned ones. It was just a simple compact car but it seemed a lot cleaner than the rest, like someone had been using it. Carl kept low and hid behind a dumpster. Normally, the smell would have bothered him but at that moment he figured it would probably help mask him if a walker came up.

"Whatever caused that fire back there isn't any of our concern. We checked the place over, remember?" An unfamiliar voice spoke from inside one of the stores down the street. Carl tried his best to get a glimpse at the figure as he emerged: ginger hair and handlebar mustache, camouflage pants, boots, and a jacket. He was tall and had a pretty muscular build, looked like he might have been ex-military—especially with the firearm he was carrying. Something that was most likely semiautomatic and could definitely do more harm than a pistol.

The man continued, "Look… Just grab everything we _need_ and let's get the hell out of here before we get blocked in by roamers. We need to make it back to the others."

Carl couldn't quite make out the second figure that was with him, only that it was a man. He couldn't hear his response nor could he see him as he got into the car, head lowered. He wasn't quite sure if there were others with the two men or not but he supposed he got his confirmation when the redheaded man got into the passenger side before the car took off.

Once the car was out of sight and he could no longer hear its engine, Carl came out from hiding. He stayed low as he snuck across the street and into the store the two men had just been in. There were a few freshly killed walkers sprawled out on the floor, clean blows to the head by blades. Carl kept his eyes peeled for anything moving as he pushed on through the store. The place looked pretty well picked clean after all the years that had passed. But not everything had been taken.

Carl smiled when he came across the pharmacy and noticed that there were still quite a few bottles of various medications. He climbed over the counter and dropped the backpack to the floor before going to work and snatching up different bottles to read the labels. There was some stuff for colds and some pain medication. But when Carl found a couple different antibiotics, he almost wanted to just take off running back to his sister, Daryl, and Maggie. Surely one of them would have to work for Daryl and extras were never a bad thing to have on hand.

_Extras._

The word brought a question to Carl's mind. If those two men were collecting supplies—and it sounded like they belonged to a group—why didn't they take everything for themselves? It really only made sense to in this world.

But it also sounded like those two men must have made some kind of excursion to check out the fire. Carl could only guess by _fire_ that man meant the very fire they had just barely escaped. Were they looking for someone? Or did the smoke and flames just draw their attention?

Even though he didn't know the military style guy, Carl had a sudden sinking feeling in his gut that he may have known the man that was with him.

* * *

Night was approaching and with each minute it grew closer, the more light they lost as they remained in that single bedroom. Judith had been stir crazy most of the day and Maggie couldn't blame her. There wasn't much for the toddler to do other than walk around the house, and Maggie preferred that she stayed within her sight at all times just in case.

But as the day wore on, so did Judith. She was finally starting to crash. "Is it bedtime yet?"

"Just about. I think I could call it a day myself." Maggie stretched and rubbed a hand over her stomach. The baby felt like it was doing its fair share of stretching as well. "Stay here with Daryl. I'm gonna go check everything real quick before we turn in, alright?"

Judith nodded as Maggie exited from the room and headed downstairs. With Carl gone, she felt even more paranoid than usual about someone or something coming into the house. She double checked to make sure the front door was locked, even though if someone truly wanted in, they could easily force their way in. All of the windows on the main floor had been covered with curtains to block everything out of sight as well. It was one of the first things they did after they claimed the house as their own.

Maggie returned to the bedroom and shut the door behind her. Judith was already curled up under the blankets with Daryl, the sight always putting a smile on Maggie's face. The bed was at least a full, maybe even a queen, so there really was plenty of room for the three of them to get some rest. She crawled up on the bed herself facing Daryl with Judith sandwiched between them.

"This probably ain't the best idea ya know."

"And why's that?" Maggie raised an eyebrow at Daryl as Judith snuggled in closer to her chest. Normally she would snuggle with Daryl but with his injury, it made it nearly impossible without hurting him.

Daryl sighed. "Do I really need to spell it out for you?"

"You can't possibly be embarrassed to sleep with me. We've only slept together numerous times over the course of the past few months," Maggie teased. She smiled when she noticed Daryl's face flush.

"…Not what I was tryin' to get at."

"Just get some sleep, Daryl." She knew exactly what he meant. He wasn't going to let her forget it—how dangerous it technically was being around him, being this close to him when he was sick. But it was just an infection and nothing had really changed over the past 48 hours. He wasn't going to just up and die in his sleep. He wasn't _that_ sick. Maggie appreciated his concern though.

"What do we do if Carl ain't back by tomorrow?"

"Daryl…" Maggie shut her eyes and sighed. She couldn't stop thinking about Carl and the fact that he was still out there somewhere by himself. She'd be lucky if she got any sleep. But they couldn't dwell on it. Carl knew what he was doing and he was probably the most capable of pulling it off anyhow.

"Sorry…"

* * *

_I'm curious: any predictions?_


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N:** After this next chapter or two, I might just start making some time jumps. Sorry for the delay in updating.

* * *

It was starting to get late by the time Carl had hit most of the buildings worth checking out. He felt satisfied with all that he found, a full backpack to show for it. But with the loss of sunlight, he was in need of a safe place he could rest for the night. There was no way he was going to risk traveling at night. He didn't need to remind himself that it wasn't just walkers out there. And no matter how much he wanted to investigate who those two men were, he couldn't risk that either.

Carl tried a small local shop, taking out a couple walkers in the process. It looked like it should have an upstairs considering it had windows on the second story. He cautiously proceeded through the back of the building and through a door that led outside where he found an old rickety wooden staircase. He climbed the steps with the machete at the ready for any walkers that could be lurking just through the door upstairs. It looked as though it was a small apartment attached to the store, the storeowners more than likely living there at one point in time before all of this. He tried the door and was thankful it was unlocked as it screeched its way open on worn out hinges.

Carl immediately scanned the place over. There were no walkers in sight and no bodies to be found. He went back to shut the door to the outside and locked the deadbolt. It would work until morning. It provided him with shelter from the cold as well as from the walkers, seeing as they couldn't climb the stairs and bust the door down.

The smell of the cramped quarters was anything but pleasing. Eyeing the shut refrigerator that sat in the kitchen, Carl had a feeling he had found the culprit. He sighed and moved toward a short hallway that led into the single bedroom. He shut the door behind him out of habit and walked forward to the window that overlooked the street. There were a handful of walkers shuffling down the center and practically tripping over themselves. The cold weather seemed to affect them just as much as it affected a normal human being. It slowed them down considerably, even more so without the sun to shine a little warmth.

Carl cupped his hands over his mouth and breathed on them before rubbing them together to create some friction. He left the window and slid the backpack off his back, propping it up against the nightstand layered with dust. He wasn't sure if he was truly going to be able to get some sleep or not but he figured it was worth a shot. So he placed his pistol on the nightstand and pulled the blanket back before nestling into the bed. He flipped the pillow over in hopes that it might be a little cleaner on the unexposed side and rested his head. He'd try to get some rest and then he'd get up and get back to it when the sun came up.

* * *

Maggie was the first to wake of the trio as she was greeted by fluttering kicks from within her swollen belly. She groaned and slipped her way back to her feet without disturbing Judith or Daryl, a shiver running through her body upon leaving the warmth of the bed. She could tell from what light was filtering in through the window that it was early, the sun still rising beyond the horizon.

Carl wasn't back yet nor were there any signs of him. That was the first thought that had struck Maggie followed by: she needed to find something that they could eat as well as prepare what she had to change the bandaging covering Daryl's wounds. She could only pray that Carl was okay and that he had some luck finding supplies—very much needed supplies.

Judith stirred from her sleep. Her little hands rubbed at her eyes as she yawned before she sat up, suddenly wide awake and staring at Maggie. "'S he back yet?"

Maggie gently shook her head and Judith's face fell at the news. She wanted to assure her that Carl would be back before the day was over but she didn't want to say that and Carl not show up. She didn't want to lie. She was scared and for the first time in months, she was beginning to feel like she was alone.

Judith jumped down from the bed and readjusted the blanket so that it remained covering Daryl. Since Maggie had taken a seat on the floor, Judith immediately clung to her side and leaned against her. Whether it was for comfort or for warmth, Maggie didn't know, but she appreciated it.

Maggie opened a can of fruit cocktail and quickly passed it to Judith before the smell of the syrupy fruit assaulted her nose. She had been finding that her body was reacting to different scents due to her pregnancy and she could only hope that it wouldn't be much longer that it affected her.

She got back on her feet and stared at Daryl. His face was completely slack, wiped clean of any emotion as he slept. Even though it had been at least a couple days, she still wasn't used to it—Daryl not waking before everyone else. He needed the rest but Maggie needed to hear his voice, to see his piercing blues staring at her, assuring her that he was at least alive and okay to some degree.

"Daryl," Maggie spoke in a firm manner, loud enough so that he'd be able to hear her but soft enough that she wasn't too overbearing. She didn't want to let on that she was worried and that she truly needed him, awake, if only for a couple minutes. She placed a hand on his shoulder and lightly jostled him. The second time she shook him a little harder but she at least received a groan out of him.

Daryl furrowed his brow before his eyes slowly flickered open hazily. It took him a moment before his stare had locked onto Maggie's and she smiled.

"I just wanted to make sure you still felt okay. I wanna change your bandages and then maybe we can eat a little something." Maggie's hand was still resting on Daryl's shoulder as she spoke. She noticed Daryl seemed confused as though he were trying to recall what all had happened.

"Carl?" Daryl inquired.

"He's not back yet." Maggie pressed her hand to his forehead, finding that he was still warm from his fever. She pulled the blanket back so that it only covered him from the waist down.

"Don't try an' go after him… If he doesn't come back today." Daryl shut his eyes as he continued, "He'll be fine. Kid's smart."

Maggie smiled weakly at his remark. He was so concerned about Carl leaving on his own just yesterday but now he was saying Carl would be fine. She understood what he meant. Carl was more than capable of venturing out alone and returning in one piece, she knew that—they all knew that. It just didn't ease the anxiety of it all. And Daryl didn't want her to take off and risk her life trying to track Carl down.

"I'm not going anywhere." Maggie briefly rubbed his arm in a comforting gesture before she started pushing and pulling the couple layers of clothes Daryl was wearing out of the way to access his wounds.

There was a slight _clang_ of the fork hitting the side of the can as Judith left it unattended on the floor and crawled back up on the bed behind Daryl. She carefully grabbed his shirt and held it back, looking up at Maggie with pure innocence. "Can I help?"

"You already are. Just keep a hold of his shirt." Maggie peeled both the bandages off and cringed at the sight. Both the entry and exit wound were completely red with inflammation. Daryl hadn't really moved a whole lot in quite some time so there wasn't any bleeding, but there was some drainage from the infection. Even though it really wasn't _too_ bad, it was almost enough to make Maggie sick.

She folded the used bandages up and set them on the floor as she grabbed some fresh. With Judith's assistance, she was able to redress his wounds with little effort on her part, not having to fight around his clothes. Daryl hadn't really stirred during that time, his eyes still shut. Judith released his shirt once Maggie gave her the okay and pulled it down to cover up the work.

"Daryl?" Maggie jostled his shoulder again. She continued once his eyes opened and focused on her, "How about some food?"

"Stomach don't feel too good," Daryl mumbled.

Maggie frowned. "You need to try and eat. Keep your strength up."

Daryl shut his eyes again and grumbled incoherently under his breath. Maggie knew better than that. She knew he wanted to argue but he was quickly learning over the course of time that he wasn't going to win.

"If you don't physically feed yourself, I'll do it for you." Maggie placed her hands on her hips. She caught the slightest smirk pass over Daryl's lips at her comment.

"I'll eat…" Daryl looked back up at her. "But only if it keeps ya off my ass."

"I can't make any promises about that." Maggie glanced over at Judith and smiled. Judith grabbed the can of fruit cocktail and made to pass it off to Daryl when they heard a noise from downstairs. She froze where she stood, can in hand, and looked back and forth between the two adults.

Maggie grabbed the can from her hands and set it on the floor. "Hide in the closet just in case, alright?" She warned Judith as the little girl nodded her head and did as she was told. Maggie didn't want to take any chances. She turned back to Daryl. "You stay put. I mean it."

Daryl rolled his eyes but otherwise, he complied. Maggie grabbed two pistols from the pile of their belongings and handed one to Daryl just to be on the safe side, the other she kept, grasped firmly in her hand. She left the room and quietly shut the door behind her as she crept toward the stairs.

In one swift movement, Maggie leaned out from behind the wall and aimed her pistol at the base of the steps. She wasn't sure if she should be relieved or not when she came up empty handed. So she took a deep breath and carefully took a couple steps at a time as she descended the staircase. The only thing her mind registered was that she suddenly saw movement and she aimed her gun once again, her finger ready on the trigger. But she almost dropped the weapon and allowed it to clatter to the floor once her brain finally processed what, or rather _who_, she was looking at.

"Carl—" Maggie lowered the pistol and joined his side.

"Geez, I walk in and you're pointing a gun at me?" Carl smiled. "Glad you're being careful."

Maggie nodded. "After what we've been through, I'm not taking any chances." She eyed the backpack and noticed it looked pretty full. "You…found some stuff?"

"Yeah. I guess it's not a whole lot but if I go back I could probably get another backpack full." Carl started up the stairs and entered into the bedroom. Maggie followed behind him and shut the door to keep whatever heat they had inside.

"Something's better than nothing," Maggie reminded him. Judith exited from the closet at the sound of her voice and lit up with excitement once she saw her brother. As soon as Carl had slid the backpack off, Judith had practically pounced on him, almost knocking him down.

"I missed you!" Judith exclaimed.

Carl picked Judith up and hugged her while she wrapped her limbs around him. "I missed you too." He set her back on her feet and turned toward Daryl. "Glad to see you're still okay."

Daryl scoffed. "Can't get rid of me that easily." He handed the pistol back to Maggie seeing as it wasn't needed.

Carl grinned. He turned his attention to the backpack and unzipped it before dumping its contents onto the floor similar to how he had before he left. "I found a couple different antibiotics. I wasn't sure which one would work best. Found some more medical stuff too. Figured that was the most important on the list other than some more food and water."

Maggie got down on her knees and started pilfering through the supplies. "This is great, Carl! I—I don't even know what to say... Thank you." She grabbed an amber colored bottle and started reading the label.

"There was some baby stuff too. I didn't know what to grab so… I didn't. But there were diapers. I couldn't get them to fit into the bag though," Carl explained. "I'm gonna go back."

"Ya didn't run into any trouble?" Daryl questioned.

Carl shook his head. "There were two guys there before I showed up. I stayed back and waited for them to leave, but no trouble."

Maggie stopped reading the labels and turned her attention to Carl. "Did you get a good look at them? Did they look familiar?" They could be dealing with more dangerous scavengers, more men from Mark's group, or there was a slim chance that it could have been Rick.

"I couldn't really see them from where I was standing. The one guy looked like he might have been ex-military but he didn't look familiar. I'm not sure about the other guy."

"You weren't followed?"

"No." Carl shook his head again. "They were long gone, left in a car. I spent the night in some upstairs apartment in the back of a store. Only movement I had was walkers."

Maggie nodded in understanding. There was no way those people were a part of their group—no Rick, no Glenn, no Beth… They wouldn't be with some stranger, especially if they had been attacked by Mark's group too.

"Okay… Let's try to find an antibiotic that'll work."


End file.
